


Golden Bomber, Gackt and the Superheroes

by GlitterNyappyGacktRose



Category: Gackt (Musician) RPF, Hyde (Musician) RPF, MEJIBRAY, Malice Mizer, Nightmare (Band), Omega Dripp, X JAPAN, ZIZ (Band), ゴールデンボンバー | Golden Bomber (Band)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Superheroes, Visual Kei
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-21
Updated: 2019-11-21
Packaged: 2021-02-16 09:49:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 20,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21505900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlitterNyappyGacktRose/pseuds/GlitterNyappyGacktRose
Summary: The four Golden Bomber boys are high school students. Inspired by their hero, Gackt, who is not only a visual kei star and actor, but also a superhero, they decide to set up their own superhero club to try fight crime. One day, Kiryuuin crosses paths with Gackt. But sometimes meeting your hero doesn't work out the way you expect it to...
Relationships: Darvish Kenji/Utahiroba Jun (Golden Bomber), Kiryuuin Sho/Kyan Yutaka (Golden Bomber)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 1





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this in the style of innocent fanfics I used to write as a teenager. As a big fan of the Golden Bomber movies, I tried to recreate the over-the-top fun atmosphere. Enjoy!  
> Note: I don't hate Gackt, but I think he fits the role well.

_Boku no namae wa Kiryuuin Shou. Koukou san nen sei…_

  
Bang! Kiryuiin looked up from his diary to find Kyan sprawled out on the floor, a fallen chair beside him.

  
“Ow ow ow,” groaned Kyan, clutching his leg. Kiryuuin grinned, wondering what trouble his boyfriend had gotten into this time. Beside him, Kenji and Jun were exchanging loving looks as they held hands under the table.

  
“What happened this time, Kyan?” giggled Kiryuuin, checking to see if his boyfriend was ok.

  
“I was practicing this cool new move to take down bad guys, and I sort of screwed it up,” responded Kyan, still wincing from pain.

  
No-one in the school judged the guys for being gay. In fact, no-one batted an eyelid if they walked hand-in-hand across the schoolyard. However, that didn’t mean they were spared from being bullied. In fact, they were probably the easiest targets in the school. Not because they were gay though. It was because they were all members of the superhero club.

  
Clubs are mandatory at Japanese schools. Most people joined sports clubs, but there was also the home economics club, the culture club, the calligraphy club, and so on. All the cool guys were in the baseball club and were easily identified by their shaved heads. The Golden Bomber boys were also easily identifiable because of their superhero masks, resulting in them often being tripped in the corridors, or having things thrown at them in the classroom. They knew that the world needed them, so they tried not to let the bullying get to them.

  
The four of them had bonded in their first year of high school over their mutual love of the superhero Gackt. Gackt was the most famous superhero in Japan. Not only was he a superhero, but he was also a visual kei singer and an actor. The boys admired his work, in complete awe of him as he went from taking down bad guys to rocking out on stage to working acting in jaw-droppingly awesome action movies with stars such as Leehom Wang and Hyde. Inspired by their hero Gackt, the four formed their own superhero group, doing their best to make their small world around them a better place. But their definition of saving people was a little bit off, and often they ended up causing more harm than good. But their hearts were in the right place, even if it meant they had to write up lines for skipping class to save a cat stuck in a tree.

  
Kiryuuin helped Kyan to his feet before looking around the room at his friends and smiling. He’d met Jun and Kenji when they first started high school. But Kyan and him had been childhood friends. It had all started when Kiryuuin had been transferred into a new school in his last year of elementary school. Even then, Gackt had been Kiryuuin’s hero. But moving to a new school and having no friends knocked his confidence. The Gackt pencil case that he had once displayed on his desk with pride was hidden in the corner of his schoolbag, and that pride had turned to anxiety and fear. The other kids around him seemed so much more mature… what if they judged him for liking such things? That all changed the day he met Kyan. One day, Kiryuuin was running late for school. Terrified to cause any trouble at his new school, he ran as fast as his little legs would carry him.

  
_I’m going to make it,_ he thought, glancing down at his watch as he rushed through the gates. Crash. In the split-split second he had taken to check his watch, Kiryuuin had collided with another student and tumbled to the ground. He looked up to apologise, but no words came out as he spotted a boy from his class, an entire nikuman dangling from his mouth.

  
_Are you ok? Come on, we have to get to class,_ the boy said, offering to help Kiryuuin up. Just as Kiryuuin opened his mouth to apologise, his jaw dropped in shock as the other boy devoured the entire nikuman in one bite.

  
_You’re quiet, aren’t you. Hey, is that yours?_

  
Kiryuuin followed the boy’s gaze to realise that his Gackt pencil case had slipped out of his bag. Kiryuuin scrambled to pick it up and hide it, but it was too late. Kyan had already picked it up and was inspecting it closely.

  
_You like Gackt?_ he questioned. Then his face split into a grin. _I don’t believe it! I like Gackt too! What’s your name?_

  
_My name is Kiryuuin Shou and I love Gackt,_ blurted out Kiryuuin, his voice trembling with excitement. It was from that moment on that the two of them became friends.

*

“Kiryuuin? Hey, earth to Kiryuuin!”

  
Kiryuuin snapped out of his daze to the sound of Kenji’s voice. He realised that he had been staring into space again with a huge grin on his face, caught up in the past.

  
“Oh, uh, sorry, what did you say?”

  
“Kenji was just wondering if you two are going to join us at the fireworks festival this year,” explained Jun, patting Kenji on the head.

  
“How could we not join you?” piped up Kyan, crossing his arms and gazing off into the distance, a true superhero pose. “Between drunken hooligans and distracted people, there are bound to be crimes to stop!”

  
Kiryuuin beamed at Kyan. He couldn’t have put it better himself. But that wasn’t the only reason that he wanted to go…  
In their first year of high school, the four of them had gone to this fireworks festival together. They had just set up their superhero club and were getting to know each other. Although Kiryuuin and Kyan had been friends for quite some time, he wasn’t overly familiar with Jun and Kenji. However, it didn’t take him long to figure it out.  
Kiryuuin’s jaw dropped when he laid eyes on Jun. He had done up his hair with pretty flower clips and was wearing a beautiful purple yukata with flowers. Kenji, also wearing a yukata, eagerly pulled him into a hug. At first, Kiryuuin had assumed that they were just super close. It was only when he spotted them kissing as they admired the stars did he realise that the two were dating.

  
At that point, Kiryuuin had never been on a date in his life. In fact, he had never been kissed by anyone. Or even held hands with someone. He had been so caught up in his superhero lifestyle that he simply hadn’t noticed that his classmates around him were becoming interested in those sorts of things. And by the time he realised it, he became too afraid to do anything about it, in case anyone noticed just how inexperienced he was.

  
_I’m hungry,_ announced Kyan enthusiastically, paying no attention to Jun and Kenji as they embraced each other. _Let’s go check out the food, Kiryuuin._  
And so, the two made their way over towards the numerous food stalls. Before Kiryuuin had the chance to open his mouth, Kyan had already made a beeline for a takoyaki stand. Kiryuuin just caught the tail-end of the conversation between Kyan and the vendor when he made his way over.  
_Forty takoyaki?_ repeated the vendor incredulously. _Are you having a takoyaki party?_

  
_No, they’re all for me._

  
_Well, well, well, if it isn’t the hobbit._

  
Kiryuuin’s heart sank. Tanaka, the biggest and meanest boy from the baseball club had spotted him in the crowd and began jeering him.  
_What’s wrong, hobbit? Haven’t got a girlfriend to take to the fireworks? You’re such a loser. Who’d date a hobbit like you?_

  
_Oi,_ barked Kyan, now stuffing takoyaki into his face. _You’re one to talk, Tanaka. Your face looks like a takoyaki. And where’s your girlfriend?_

  
Tanaka opened and closed his mouth, his face flushed. Kiryuuin ignored him to look at Kyan, whose face was brimming with confidence as he stuffed several takoyaki into his mouth at once. Of course… how hadn’t Kiryuuin thought of that? He’d been so caught up in his own insecurities that he’d failed to notice that he’d never even seen Tanaka talk to a girl. To his amazement, Tanaka turned on heel and fled into the crowd.

  
_Kyan,_ whispered Kiryuuin. _T-Thank you._

  
_No, you’re not getting any!_ yelled Kyan, holding the remaining takoyaki above his head. Then his expression softened. _Oh, you mean about Tanaka? No problem! Hold on, did that man just skip the queue?_

  
And sure enough, Kiryuuin spotted a battered-looking salary man make his way up to a shaved ice stand, completely ignoring the queue of school kids and parents waiting patiently. Kiryuuin made his way over, and muttered _“ano, sumimasen”_ so quietly that the man didn’t even hear him. No, that wasn’t good enough. He was a superhero, they all were. Kyan had shown his bravery tonight. Now it was his turn.

  
_Hey!_ yelled Kiryuuin, sounding more confident than he felt. _Can’t you see that there’s a queue here? Why did you just ignore all these people who are clearly waiting? Do you think that you deserve shaved ice more than they do?_

  
To Kiryuuin’s surprise, the man muttered something under his breath before walking off, abandoning the shaved ice stand. While no-one else seemed bothered by the incident, Kyan was beaming at him.

  
_Wow, Kiryuuin, that was amazing! You’d make Gackt proud!_

  
Just then, they heard the sound of the first firework bursting into a thousand colourful sparkles in the sky.

  
_Oh no! The fireworks have started. We have to hurry! Don’t get lost in the crowd!_

  
Kiryuuin’s heart almost burst through his chest. But it wasn’t because they were running. It was because Kyan had grabbed him by the hand and was pulling him through the crowd. Kiryuuin had never felt this way before.

  
_Phew, made it!_ gasped Kyan, as the two arrived back at their spot in the park. Both Kenji and Jun were transfixed by the fireworks, it was though they hadn’t even noticed them return. Kiryuuin wanted to say something, anything, to convey how he felt. But he was lost for words.

  
_They’re beautiful, aren’t they?_ breathed Kyan after a long silence. He then glanced at Kiryuuin, who had remained silent. _But they’re not as beautiful as you are though._

  
And with that, Kyan leaned over and planted a kiss directly on Kiryuuin’s lips. Kiryuuin’s heart almost stopped. He felt his face turn bright red as Kyan pulled away.

_I… I like you… Kyan…_

  
Kyan laughed at his awkwardness and held his hand. And so, the two shared many takoyaki-flavoured kisses that night.

*

“I’m sure Kiryuuin wants to go to see the fireworks this year,” laughed Kyan, looking fondly at his boyfriend who was once again caught up his memories. But then his smile faltered a bit. He knew that he’d have to tell him, sooner rather than later. But he just couldn’t bring himself to destroy such a sweet smile.


	2. Chapter 2

As the days passed by, and they drew closer and closer to the day of the fireworks festival, Kiryuuin felt that nothing else could possibly be more exciting. However, he was proved wrong one Tuesday morning when he scrolled through social media and discovered a post that made his heart stand still. He felt his breath stop as he clicked the post, as though he feared that he had just dreamt it. But the post remained on the screen, clearly not a figment of his imagination.

  
Kiryuuin got ready for school in record time. At lightning speed, he changed into his uniform that he’d thrown on the floor the night before, grabbed his bag and sprinted out the door, not even thinking about breakfast. He was so excited that he often ran straight across roads, not even glancing to see if it was safe. Luckily, he managed not to get hit, and before long, he had burst through the door of the superhero club. To his surprise, Kyan, Jun and Kenji were already there, even though it was still early.

  
“Guys, you’re not going to believe this!” panted Kiryuuin, out of breath from running. He held his phone out, showing them the post. “Gackt is coming to a convention in Osaka. We’re actually going to get to meet him!”

  
The other three took the phone to have a look before exchanging glances at each other. None of them were smiling. They didn’t seem excited at all.

  
“What’s wrong?” asked Kiryuuin, taking the phone back to check that he hadn’t misunderstood the post. “Gackt is coming, don’t you get it? We can meet him, and tell him about our club and he’ll even sign a poster-"

  
“Kiryuuin,” began Jun, looking a little pained. “I know you’re very excited about this, but… did you check the date?”

  
Kiryuuin felt his heart drop. He didn’t even consider that there could be an issue. However, he frowned when he checked the post again.

  
“The twenty third of September,” he responded slowly, trying to think what could be wrong with it. “I know that it’s a school day, but this is a one-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

  
“Do you seriously not get it?!” snapped Kyan suddenly.

  
Kiryuuin jumped, almost dropping his phone. Of all people, he’d thought that Kyan would have been the most excited. So why was he reacting like this? Kiryuuin stared at Kyan with confused and hurt eyes. Kyan sighed, looking as though he was struggling with what to say next.

  
“I know this is really important to you, Kiryuuin, I really do,” began Kyan slowly, But then his eyes grew dark. “I know how much you care about all of this. But seriously, do you not care about your future at all?”

  
“The music exam,” whispered Kenji helpfully, as Kiryuuin continued to look confused.

  
“If I don’t pass that exam, I won’t be able to get a scholarship,” thundered Kyan. “That scholarship is the only chance I’ll have to study music. I’m not going to throw it away to meet some superhero.”

  
“Gackt,” whispered Kiryuuin, tears streaming down his face. “It’s not just some superhero. This is Gackt, Kyan. How could you-“  
“Don’t tell me you’re still thinking of going?” breathed Kyan, his eyes widening. “You’re in the same boat as me, as all of us. You’re not even thinking of throwing away your only chance at getting a scholarship for this, are you?”

  
“But o-our club..” whimpered Kiryuuin, looking around the room at the posters of Gackt, and then all the pictures they’d taken together, dressed in their superhero costumes and fighting crime. “I thought that the club always came first…”

  
“Should we tell him?” whispered Jun. His eyes fell to the floor when he realised that Kiryuuin had heard him.

  
“Kiryuuin,” began Kenji calmly, deciding to be the one to tell him. “We were just having a meeting, and we’ve decided that we need to put our studies first. We’re in our final year of school, and if we don’t start studying now, we might not get a good chance at a future so-"

  
“You’re going to dissolve the superhero club?” squeaked Kiryuuin, his tear-filled eyes wide with shock and pain.

  
“Not dissolve, no,” explained Kenji gently. “We can still meet once or twice a week, depending on how busy we are. It’s just that we can’t afford to keep skipping classes to go save the world. We have to think about our future, and if we don’t start studying-"

  
“Crime doesn’t follow our school schedule!” argued Kiryuuin, rubbing at his eyes. “Do you think that criminals are going to stop just because we have a class to go to, or a test to study for? The world needs us! We can’t turn our backs on the world just because we have to study. You guys are only thinking of yourself. What-"

  
“Aren’t you the one who’s only thinking of themselves?” yelled Kyan, banging his fist on the table. “The three of us want to succeed, Kiryuuin, and you’re trying to pull us back! We’re afraid for our futures, and we’re the only ones who can do anything to change it. Besides, we never were saving the world, were we? What, stopping people from littering and taking lost items to the police box. The world will be just fine even if we don’t do those things.”

  
“Kyan…” whispered Kiryuuin, his entire body shaking. He couldn’t hold it in anymore. He covered his face and legged it out of the club room.

*

The sound of knocking awoke Kiryuuin with a start. It took him a second to realise where he was. He was inside a cleaning cupboard at school. How long had he been in there for? He hid in there, trying to hide his tears from the rest of the school, and had eventually fallen asleep from exhaustion. Slowly, Kiryuuin pushed the door open to find Kyan’s face smiling at him.

  
“Wow, I was kind of hoping you wouldn’t be in here,” he began, trying to sound cheerful. “You didn’t really spend all day in here, did you?”

  
“All day…?” mumbled Kiryuuin, looking at his watch. And sure enough, he was right. Their last class had ended over half an hour ago.

  
“Don’t worry, it was kind of a slow day,” assured Kyan, offering his hand to help him out of the cupboard. “But later on tonight, we’re going to go to Jun’s house to compare notes and study. And if there’s time after that, we’re going to watch a few performances from Gackt’s new live DVD-"

  
“You really aren’t coming, are you?” whispered Kiryuuin. Kyan’s face fell, but he tried to remain calm.

  
“Kiryuuin, I know how much Gackt means to you, but you can’t seriously be thinking of throwing away your future to meet him. For all you know, he could even come to Tokyo in the next few months! I can’t stand seeing you being so reckless!”

  
“Yeah?” retorted Kiryuuin, suddenly feeling anger rather than sadness. “Well, I can’t stand being with someone that doesn’t understand the things that are most important to me!”

  
“Kiryuuin…” began Kyan, trailing off. He looked hurt and not sure of what to say next.

  
“I-If you can’t understand me, then maybe you shouldn’t even be talking to me!” yelled Kiryuuin, feeling more and more angry. He couldn’t believe that they had all ganged up on him like this. There were supposed to be a team.

  
“Kiryuuin, calm down!” insisted Kyan, trying to smile. “If we’re not talking to each other, then how are we supposed to go to the fireworks festival with you on Friday?”  
“Maybe I don’t want to go to the fireworks festival with someone who doesn’t understand me!”

  
Kyan opened his mouth to retort but slowly closed it. A single tear rolled down his cheek.

  
“Y-Yeah?” he stumbled, his voice wobbling. “The fireworks festival is the most important night of the year for me, Kiryuuin. Maybe I can’t be with someone that doesn’t understand that.”

  
“Well, maybe we can’t be together then, Kyan, can we?” snapped Kiryuuin, his anger overwhelming.

  
“I don’t think we can,” whispered Kyan in response. “I-I guess we’re over then, aren’t we?”

  
“Fine then!”

  
And with that, Kiryuuin turned away and ran all the way home.

*

For the next few days, Kiryuuin didn’t go to school. He couldn’t even bring himself to leave his room. He just spent his time writing out what he wanted to say to Gackt when he met him. He’d already bought his ticket for his convention and begged his mum for money for the Shinkansen (she probably wouldn’t have agreed if he’d told her what day he was going, but he managed to conceal that fact from her). It had only been a few days, but Kiryuuin’s room was littered with crumbled up bits of paper, and pages with several lines scribbled out. No matter how much thought he gave to it, he just couldn’t perfectly convey what he wanted to say to Gackt. The feelings were in his heart, but his brain struggled to come up with the words.

  
He hadn’t heard anything from Kyan at all. No calls, no messages, nothing. Kiryuuin had been livid with him on Tuesday, but he didn’t think Kyan would stay silent for so long. Besides a message from Jun asking him if he was coming to school, Kiryuuin hadn’t heard from his friends at all. Rather than giving it much thought, Kiryuuin gave all his attention to thinking about what to say to Gackt. He was so engrossed that he managed to stay up all night on Thursday, He’d only realised it when he heard a knock on his bedroom door. Startled, he looked up from his desk. Perhaps Kyan and the others had come because they were worried about him? Maybe they had changed their minds about meeting Gackt?

  
But it wasn’t Kyan, or even Kenji or Jun. It was his mother.

  
“Shou, did you stay up all night studying again?” she asked, sounding both impressed and concerned at the same time. “I know you’re trying to take your studies more seriously, but you need to sleep. Also, you shouldn’t skip class so much. I know you have a lot to do, but you’ll fall behind if you don’t go to class… Anyway, I brought you something to eat. You need to keep your strength up.”

  
“Thanks Mum,” mumbled Kiryuuin, making space on the table for the tray she had brought him. He felt bad, but he didn’t want to tell her that he wasn’t staying up all night and skipping school to study. Maybe he could make it up to her by trying harder after he met Gackt?”

  
“Perhaps you should take a break,” suggested his mother, happily laying the tray down. “Tonight is the fireworks festival. Are you going to go with Kyan?”

  
Kiryuuin was glad that he had his back to his mother. The sudden question made tears well up in his eyes.

  
“Well, if you’re going, you might want to take an umbrella,” continued his mother, not noticing. “It looks like it’s going to rain tonight.”

  
The door snapped shut. Kiryuuin dragged himself away from his desk to stare out the window at the looming grey clouds. The rain was yet to fall, yet the floor was dotted with his tears.

  
“I... I guess I could take a walk later and clear my head,” whispered Kiryuuin to himself.

But when Kiryuuin decided to take a walk later, he was greeted by rain-soaked deserted streets. The rain had gotten so bad that a weather advisory had been issued, and subsequently the fireworks festival was cancelled. Kiryuuin had insisted to himself that he was only going outside to try clear his head and think of the best way to phrase what he wanted to say to Gackt. But he found himself heading back to the usual spot in the park, where his friends were nowhere to be found.


	3. Chapter 3

Kiryuuin didn’t attend a single class over the next few weeks. In fact, he barely set foot in the school. He spent the days patrolling the streets, wearing his superhero mask. Although he was giving more times to patrols than ever since it was just him now, he found that there seemed to be less crime happening. Or perhaps he was just too caught up in his thoughts about Gackt to play close enough attention.

  
From time to time, Kiryuuin did enter the school, but only to get materials from the superhero club room. He was always careful to pick times where he thought he wouldn’t run into anyone, and practically sprinted through the corridors. So far, he’d managed to avoid Kyan and the other. He knew that he couldn’t keep this lifestyle up forever, but he assured himself that things would change after he met Gackt.

  
By night, Kiryuuin spent his time writing out what he wanted to say to Gackt. So far, he only had five pages done, but he felt that they were close to perfection. He set daily word goals for himself to ensure that he’d have his speech prepared on time.

Kiryuuin arrived at Shinjuku station early the day of the convention. Ideally, he would have liked to have been in Osaka the day before, in case of transport delays. But unfortunately, the little money he saved from his summer part-time job was not enough to cover accommodation.

  
Kiryuuin rubbed his exhausted eyes as he boarded the first possible Shinkansen he could take. He had spent the entire night whispering his memorised speech to himself, unable to catch a wink of sleep. But as soon as he sat down, he felt his eyes drooping. He smiled to himself: he had done absolutely everything he could have to make sure that things went according to plan. He had even set multiple alarms on his phone to make sure that he didn’t sleep through his stop. Feeling a sense of relief, Kiryuuin slipped into a deep sleep almost as soon as the Shinkansen started moving.

*

A few hours later, Kiryuuin was waiting outside of the venue, eagerly waiting for the event to start. The meet and greet with Gackt wasn’t scheduled until the afternoon, but Kiryuuin couldn’t afford to be late. Besides, it was his first time in Osaka, and he wanted to leave several hours to find the venue in case he got lost. But naturally, as he had spent the last week checking how to find it on Google maps, he had found it in less time than he had expected.

  
But Kiryuuin wasn’t the only one who was early. There were other Gackt fans there already: some sporting Gackt wrist bands or carrying Gackt bags, some even in full Gackt cosplay! Kiryuuin felt a twang of sadness when he spotted a group of friends cosplaying as the four main characters from Gackt’s movie Moon Child. He wondered how different things would be if his friends had joined him. But he quickly put those thoughts aside so that he could devote his time to practicing his speech over and over again.

  
Kiryuuin had intended on eating lunch once he had gotten inside the convention. But something unexpected happened that caused him to reconsider: there were tables and tables of new Gackt merchandise.

  
Kiryuuin spent over an hour wandering from table to table, cursing himself for not starting up a part-time job sooner. Deciding that lunch would be the last thing he’d remember from that day, he made the decision to skip it, and instead spend as much as he could on merchandise. He chose carefully, picking up two glossy clear file folders, a few random photocards, a brand-new photobook and a limited edition Gackt necklace. By the time he was finished, he barely had enough left in his wallet to buy a drink from a vending machine.

  
“It’s fine,” Kiryuuin muttered to himself as he took the bag of goods from the vendor. “This is a special day. I won’t have this chance again. And at least I don’t have to think about buying gifts for anyone else.”

  
With that, he chucked, and made his way over to the room where Gackt would be in a few hours’ time. Within an hour, other people began to wait outside with him. Kiryuuin made sure that no-one would take his place at the top of the queue. His eyes meticulously scanned the room as he muttered his carefully prepared speech to himself.

  
In the end, it didn’t matter that Kiryuuin had been first in the line. As soon as they were let into the room, they handed over their tickets and were given a random number that indicated when they’d get to meet Gackt. Kiryuuin was given the number 58, meaning he’d be the 58th person to meet Gackt.

  
At first, Kiryuuin was a bit put out. But then he realised that just meant that he’d have more time to prepare what he was going to say. Besides, he hadn’t missed out too much by queuing. Sure, he had some interest in the other things the convention offered. But all of them paled in comparison to Gackt.

  
Before long, the numbers were called, and everyone started to form a queue. Kiryuuin jumped up before his number was called and eagerly ran to the end of the queue. He waited impatiently as the rest lined up behind him. Eventually, after all the numbers had been called, they were led into a large room with a screen at the end. Kiryuuin’s heart was jumping out of his chest. Most likely, Gackt was sitting right behind that screen.

  
Ignoring everyone else around him, Kiryuuin rapidly whispered his prepared speech over and over again under his breath. He was so caught up in it that he was near the front of the queue before he knew it. Was time really going that fast? Perhaps the others didn’t have as much to say as he did?

  
When it was his turn, Kiryuuin stumbled over his own feet. He eagerly hurried to the other side of the screen, where Gackt was waiting for him, marker in hand. Gackt looked just as he imagined him to, wearing his black and white superhero costume. Had it not been for his dyed blond hair, he would have looked exactly the same as he did in the poster that Kiryuuin had hanging over his bed.

  
“Hello, my name is Kiryuuin Shou,” began Kiryuuin, his voice trembling with excitement. “I’m a third year high school student, and I’ve been a fan since I was a child. I’m so happy-"

  
“Hey, it’s Gackt,” responded Gackt, his epic voice booming. “The heroes always win.”

  
Gackt held out a poster, and Kiryuuin took it with trembling hands. He had been so caught up in what he wanted to say that he hadn’t even noticed him signing it. Kiryuuin opened his mouth to continue, but he felt a hand pulling at his arm, allowing the next person to come through.

  
Once again, Kiryuuin found himself back in the original room that he had been given his number in. A member of staff handed him a plastic sheet to cover his poster. Kiryuuin wordlessly took the sheet, rooted to the spot.

  
“Excuse me, we’ll be using this room for another event later, so please wait outside,” said the staff member. Kiryuuin didn’t even realise his feet were carrying him. He only realised when he was back outside corridor that he had spent all those hours queuing in.

  
“Hey, it’s Gackt,” whispered Kiryuuin. “The heroes always win. Hey, it’s Gackt. The heroes always win…”

  
Kiryuuin repeated what Gackt had said over and over again. The phrase he’d chosen was the one he often ended interview with after he successfully prevented a crime. It had been an honour to hear those words in person with his own two ears. And he’s finally had the chance to meet his hero. And yet Kiryuuin felt the tears sliding down his face. Trying not to draw attention to himself, he slipped outside to the quiet street outside the venue.

  
Despite preparing for so long what he had wanted to say, he’d only managed to get a fraction of what he had prepared out. And while Gackt had responded with one of his famous catchphrases, it made Kiryuuin wonder if he’d even listened to what Kiryuuin had said. No, that was stupid. Gackt was a good person, a hero. Of course he had listened. It wasn’t his fault that so many people had come to see him, and that there hadn’t been enough time. And yet the tears continued sliding down Kiryuuin’s cheeks. Feeling dejected, he reached into his pocket for his Shinkansen ticket. But it wasn’t there.

  
“No…” whispered Kiryuuin, trying not to panic. Maybe he was remembering it wrong. He checked his wallet, but to no avail. In desperation, he searched through the bag of Gackt goods. But it was nowhere to be found.

  
Just then, Kiryuuin felt his phone buzz. To his surprise, it was a message from Kyan.

  
_Hey. How was your meeting with Gackt? I hope it was amazing!_

  
Kiryuuin was shocked that Kyan had even messaged him. But he found himself unable to reply. What would Kyan say if he found out what kind of situation he’d gotten himself into? Stuck in Osaka with no way back to Tokyo. And he had skipped his once shot he’d had at getting a scholarship for… what? Kiryuuin couldn’t bare it anymore. He sunk to his knees and sobbed and sobbed.

  
Kiryuuin stayed sobbing at the side of the road for hours. He cried until there were no tears left. When he finally looked up, he realised that the sun had long set and the darkness was spreading around him. Despite the warmness of the evening, he felt a shiver run down his spine. What was he going to do? He couldn’t find his ticket and had no money to buy another one. His mother thought he was taking the exam, so there was no way he could admit where he actually was. And Kyan…

  
Once again, Kiryuuin’s eyes filled with tears. Maybe Kyan had been right all along. What would he say if he saw him now? Could he really ask him for help, considering how complicated things were between them? If he asked for help, would that mean admitting defeat? But then Kiryuuin had a dark thought: What if he asked Kyan for help, but Kyan refused or ignored him? Kiryuuin couldn’t stand the thought of that happening.

  
“Hey, kid, what are you crying for?”

  
Kiryuuin looked up and rubbed his tear-filled eyes in disbelief. Standing in front of him was none other than Gackt. He was still wearing his costume from earlier.

  
“G-Gackt?” croaked Kiryuuin. “Is that you?”

  
“Of course it is. Come on now, get up!”

  
Kiryuuin wiped at his face with his tears and took a closer look. It definitely looked like Gackt. But maybe a skilled cosplayer could pull off that look. However, there was no mistaking the voice that Kiryuuin was ever so familiar with. Kiryuuin leapt to his feet, almost losing his balance as he tried to comprehend the situation.

  
“Woah, easy kid,” said Gackt. He then reached out, put a hand on each of Kiryuuin’s shoulders, and stared him directly in the eyes. “You were at the signing event, kid, weren’t you? Yeah, just as I thought. I knew you were special, but I couldn’t say it in front of the others. There’s just something about you, you know.”

  
“M-m-me?” stuttered Kiryuuin, shaking from head to toe. “S-s-special?”

  
“That’s right, you. I see a lot of potential in you, kid. How would you like to join me? We could be a team: Gackt the hero, and you, the sidekick. What’s your name, kiddo?”

  
“My name is Kiryuuin Shou,” said Kiryuuin excitedly, grinning from ear-to-ear. “I’m a third year high school student-"

  
“Woah, kid… Kiryuuin, right? I don’t need your life story. There’s somewhere we gotta be. Are you in, or are you out?”

  
Kiryuuin beamed, and almost immediately agreed. But his smile faltered slightly as he was struck by a sudden thought.

  
“B-but my friends,” he began. “We’re a team. They-"

  
“There’s no time for that, Kiryuuin,” responded Gackt seriously. “You’re here, and your friends are not. I’m asking you, Kiryuuin. Are you in?”

  
“Yes!” Kiryuuin practically screamed. And together the two of them climbed into the Gacktmobile without another seconds thought.


	4. Chapter 4

Kiryuuin felt the Shinkansen sway. He had just had the most wonderful dream that he had met Gackt, for real, and was asked to team up with him. But in reality, he had just gotten a signed poster from him… or had that been a part of the dream too? Kiryuuin slowly opened his eyes and was greeted by the sight of a road. He was not on the Shinkansen, but…

  
Kiryuuin sat bolt upright and turned to his right. Beside him was no other than Gackt, who seemed to be focusing on the road. They were inside the famous Gacktmobile and on the way to Tokyo.

  
Kiryuuin had only ever seen the Gacktmobile from the outside on TV. It had the shape of a sports car and was a sparkling silver, seemingly covered in glitter. But the inside was a whole other story. The wide leather seats were much more comfortable than the seats on the Shinkansen had been. Hanging from the mirror was a placard with Gackt’s famous catchphrase “The heroes always win.” Along with the placard was a set of dice that had several Gackt faces instead of dots, as well as a Chupacabra doll that had been designed by none other than Hyde. The steering wheel was covered in pink and black fur. Kiryuuin could hear that Gackt seemed to be blaring L’Arc en Ciel’s greatest hits from the sound system. When Kiryuuin thought Gackt wasn’t looking, he had a sneaky peek into the glove compartment. Inside were countless pairs of shades, from jewel-studded black ones, to spy-like ones, to round ones with a blueish tinge.

  
“I see you’re awake now.”

  
Kiryuuin jumped and sheepishly shut the glove compartment.

  
“Y-yeah, I didn’t mean to fall asleep,” he stuttered feebly, embarrassed at being caught. But Gackt didn’t seem to mind.

  
“Not to worry. You’re going to need your strength for our first mission.”

  
“Our first mission? Already?”

  
“A superhero doesn’t get to take breaks because crime doesn’t take a break either. Our first mission is related to my upcoming sold-out concert. My sources tell me that a fan has purchased several tickets. She intends to keep the best ones for herself and her friends, and then sell the worst ones to others for three, maybe even four times the price online. We can’t allow this to happen now, can we?”

  
“No, of course not,” agreed Kiryuuin, feeling a twang of envy. He himself had waited at his computer for hours to try get tickets but to no avail.

  
“We’re going to stop this,” continued Gackt. “This is our first mission, so I’ll show you how it’d done. You just follow my lead.”

  
“Got it!” agreed Kiryuuin. Then he hesitated for a moment. “Um… Gackt, there’s something I’d like to tell you but… well, is there time?”

  
“Fire away, kid.”

  
And so Kiryuuin blurted out the speech that he had spent so long preparing. He told Gackt everything: how he’d been a fan since he was a kid, how he’d bonded with his friends over Gackt, how they were influenced by him and formed their own superhero club together, how Gackt’s lyrics gave him the strength to carry on and believe in himself despite being bullied so much, how his room was covered in Gackt merchandise and posters, how he owned every single CD and DVD that Gackt had ever released, even the super rare ones, even about choosing to come to meet him instead of trying to take the exam for a scholarship. Gackt listened intently, not interrupting even once. He only spoke when he was sure that Kiryuuin had finished.

  
“Well, it’s clear to me that I have picked the perfect person to be my sidekick,” said Gackt slowly, glancing over at Kiryuuin. “You’ve shown me loyalty for all of these years, even though I was not there with you. It’s an honour to get to work with you, Kiryuuin Shou.”

  
Kiryuuin’s face burned red and his innocent grin stayed pasted on his face for at least the next hour.

*

“We’re here,” announced Gackt, the Gacktmobile coming to a halt. They had reached an apartment complex in a somewhat-shady looking area of Ikebukuro. The two of them climbed out of the Gacktmobile and approached the gloomy, looming building.

  
“She lives on the twelfth floor,” explained Gackt, his tone serious. “But there’s no elevator, so we’re going to have to take the stairs.”

  
“Roger!”

  
Within a few minutes, they were standing outside of a metal door. Kiryuuin raised his right arm to knock, but Gackt grabbed him by the wrist.

  
“Fool,” he hissed urgently. “If you knock, she might try to escape!”

  
“Sorry,” responded Kiryuuin apologetically. “So, what should we do?”

  
Gackt said nothing. He pulled a cowboy-style hat from seemingly nowhere and shoved it onto his head. Then, aiming his metal-plated boot carefully, he kicked down the door with one ferocious kick.

  
Inside, a girl with dyed purple hair jumped up from the floor. She was wearing a Gackt t-shirt, one from a tour that he’d done a few years ago. Inside the single-room apartment was littered with various pieces of Gackt merchandise. Beyond that, there wasn’t much furniture, and the besides the sink and a microwave, the kitchen was non-existent.

  
“Stop!” boomed Gackt, his voice powerful. “You have been caught with the crime of reselling my concert tickets. Do you have anything to say for yourself?”

  
The girl’s mouth was opening and closing, but no sound was coming out. Kiryuuin couldn’t tell if she was speechless from being caught red-handed, or if she was just flustered because her hero Gackt had just burst into her apartment. Kiryuuin looked to the spot on the floor where she had been sitting and saw several tickets. In a flash, Gackt has swept them up and began counting them.

  
“Nine, ten, eleven, twelve… thirteen. Thirteen tickets. That’s all of them. Now, you are to delete the auctions for these immediately. Kiryuuin, I want you to check the serial numbers on the tickets and make sure that she’s doing what I say!”

  
The girl silently pulled out her phone and got to work as Kiryuuin watched like a hawk over her shoulder. Meanwhile, Gackt pulled out a cigarette and began smoking, propping himself against the wall with his left leg as he stared into space.

  
“Right, that’s all of them,” said Kiryuuin eventually, taking the girl’s phone for a moment to make sure himself.

  
“Good job, Kiryuuin,” praised Gackt, clapping his hands for him. “The heroes always win. To the Gacktmobile!”

  
Kiryuuin silently followed Gackt down the seemingly endless flights of stairs, the tickets all clutched in his hand. It was only when they’d climbed back into the Gacktmobile that Gackt spoke. He handed Kiryuuin his phone.

  
“Good work, Kiryuuin. Your next task is to set up auctions for each of these tickets. This is my Yahoo auctions account. Make sure the pictures look good, ok?”

  
Kiryuuin slowly took the phone from Gackt. He must have looked confused because Gackt frowned.

  
“What, you’ve never used an auction site before? It’s simple, there are step-by-step instructions. Besides, this is different, Kiryuuin. What that girl did was awful. She took away thirteen people’s chances to come see me at my live show. You’re included in that, aren’t you? Didn’t you say that you couldn’t get a ticket?”

  
“Well, yeah,” responded Kiryuuin timidly. “But…”

  
“But? There are no buts in this duo, Kiryuuin. Are you seriously doubting me already? I am a superhero, your hero. That girl is a villain, an enemy to Gackt fans. She’s taking advantage of your vulnerabilities and using them for her own personal gain and profit. But you’re forgetting one simple thing, Kiryuuin. I am Gackt. This is my concert, and these are my tickets to sell. In fact, I sold all of these tickets before on my website, remember? But that sale is over now. As I am Gackt, I can rightfully choose whichever site I please to sell my tickets. Just imagine it, Kiryuuin, thirteen people who were devastated that they couldn’t come to see my show will be given a gift from heaven: one more chance to get a ticket. And you’re going to be a part of this. Isn’t that wonderful?”

  
Kiryuuin grinned. How had he been so stupid? Of course this was different. Not only was Gackt was stopping a girl from profiting off his fans’ vulnerabilities, but he was also giving his fans yet another chance to come see him live. Kiryuuin couldn’t think of another artist who was so considerate. He eagerly got to work.

  
“Good boy, Kiryuuin!” beamed Gackt, starting up the engine. “You really are starting to develop the mind of a true superhero! Good work, kid! Oh, and be careful not to put my name in the auction. You know, gotta stay anonymous on the internet and all that…”

  
“Yes Gackt!” barked Kiryuuin, his fingers darting across the virtual keyboard.

  
“I knew I could rely on you! For all your hard work, I’m going to reward you with a backstage pass to my Tokyo show! How lucky are you?!”

  
Once again, Kiryuuin found himself unable to stop smiling.


	5. Chapter 5

Kiryuuin awoke bright and early on Monday morning. For the first time in a long time, he pulled on his school uniform and hurried down the stairs for breakfast.

  
“Shou? Is that really you?”

  
“Yes, Mum,” responded Kiryuuin eagerly, digging into breakfast as his mother stared at him in shock.

*

Kiryuuin arrived so early to school that the corridors were almost deserted. Humming Gackt’s latest single, he made his way towards the superhero club room.

  
“Kiryuuin, is that you?”

  
Kiryuuin spun around, the key in his hand. Standing there was none other than Kyan. Kiryuuin’s eyes widened, and he opened and closed his mouth so much that he looked like a goldfish. He had no idea what he should say.

  
“Kiryuuin, I was getting worried. You haven’t come to school in ages… Does this mean that your meeting with Gackt went well?”

  
“Uh.. yeah, it went well. Really well. How was the exam?”

  
As soon as he said it, Kiryuuin realised that he had asked the wrong thing. Kyan’s face fell, and his expression grew dark.

  
“Yeah, I did the exam. So did Kenji and Jun. But you haven’t told me about Gackt yet.”

  
“So, you did get to meet Gackt then?” asked an excited-sounding voice. It was Jun, who was holding hands with Kenji.

  
And so, the four entered the club room, and Kiryuuin filled them in on everything. Or rather, almost everything. He didn’t tell them about the despair he had initially felt after meeting Gackt, or how he had almost gotten stranded in Osaka.

  
“Seriously?” yelled Kenji, looking ecstatic. “Gackt asked you to be his side-kick? Oh my god, that’s incredible. _Suge_!”

  
Both Jun and Kenji looked super excited. But Kyan seemed a little distant, almost sad looking.

  
“What kind of mission did you guys go on?” asked Jun eagerly.

  
And so Kiryuuin explained about how Gackt drove him in the Gacktmobile (Jun screamed in excitement upon hearing this) and how they stopped the girl from reselling the Gackt tickets for profit. For some reason, Kiryuuin didn’t tell them about how Gackt made him sell them afterwards. It wasn’t that he was hiding it, he just felt that it wasn’t necessary to say it. Besides, he couldn’t reveal everything about Gackt.

  
“Do you think we could ride in the Gacktmobile someday?” sighed Jun happily, his eyes sparkling.

  
“Now, Jun, don’t put pressure on Kiryuuin,” said Kenji sternly. “He’s just started working with Gackt and probably doesn’t want to come across as too demanding. Right?”

  
“I think you should be careful.”

  
The conversation came to an abrupt stop. Everyone turned towards Kyan with startled expressions. Kyan stared grimly back.

  
“So, you stopped a girl from selling tickets online?” said Kyan. “That’s not really what a superhero is supposed to do, is it? And what’s going to happen now? If they’d been online for any amount of time, I’m sure some people had already tried to buy them. What will happen to those people? Will they get their money back? I’m sure there are at least thirteen people out there who had their chance to go to Gackt’s concert ripped from them.”

  
“Now Kyan, don’t be saying things like that!” said Jun, trying to sound cheerful in order to prevent conflict. “It was their first mission together after all. I’m sure that the more serious missions will come…”

  
“There’s no need to be jealous.”

  
Jun’s face paled at Kiryuuin’s words. Kyan shook his head.

  
“I’m just worried about you, Kiryuuin, that’s all,” he explained. If he was angry at being accused of being jealous, he wasn’t showing it. “I think you’ll be fine just as long as you use your own judgement.”

  
“Gackt is the leader,” retorted Kiryuuin, also trying not to sound angry. “And I am his sidekick. I trust his judgement.”

  
“Don’t forget, you are also a leader,” pointed out Kyan, causing Kiryuuin to frown with confusion. “You’re the leader of this club, and I- no, all of us have always looked up to you and respected your decisions and ideas. Never forget that.”

  
Whatever Kiryuuin had been expecting Kyan to say, it hadn’t been that. He closed his mouth, the retort he had been coming up with in his head forgotten. And then he felt tears begin to well up in his eyes.

  
“So… what have you guys been up to recently?” asked Kiryuuin, blinking furiously. He wanted to change the subject as quickly as possible.

  
“Oh my god!” gasped Jun dramatically. “We forgot to tell you! Kenji got a job as an underwear model. And damn boy, dat ass! What is he doing here, wasting his time in school with an ass like that?”

  
“Jun!” squealed Kenji, blushing under his heavy kabuki makeup. “Stop embarrassing me! Besides, you got a job too. Tell Kiryuuin about that!”

  
“I’m working in a visual kei shop!” explained Jun eagerly. “And I love it so much. I’m able to help people find the things with even the most obscure of bands. In fact, I was able to find the first demo tape of Yoshiki and the Sluts for a customer just the other day!”

  
“I’ve never even heard of that band,” laughed Kiryuuin, delighted that their conversation had taken a turn. Then he looked somewhat awkwardly at Kyan. “So… how about you Kyan?”

  
“Me?” asked Kyan, looking startled that he’d been asked. “I got a job in a restaurant as a waiter and… KIRYUUIN, I CAN’T STAND IT!”

  
All of a sudden, Kyan’s voice grew hysterical and he leapt at Kiryuuin, burying his face into his chest as he sobbed. Kiryuuin was shocked, and awkwardly patted Kyan on the back.

  
“I… I have to take people’s orders, then bring them the food,” wailed Kyan. “And I’m not allowed to eat any of it! It all sounds so good. The customers pick the most amazing combinations of food. And I just have to write it down, then go into the kitchens and bring it to them. I can’t even try a bit!!! And on top of that, I don’t even earn enough to buy a dish from the restaurant per hour. It sucks!!!”

  
“There, there, Kyan, I’m sure you’ll be able to eat all the food you want when you’re a famous musician,” soothed Kiryuuin. However, he felt his mind starting to wonder. Every one of his friends had a part time job. Shouldn’t he have one too? But how would he be able to juggle being Gackt’s assistant along with a part time job…?

  
“Hey, I don’t mean to interrupt, but class is starting soon,” pointed out Kenji.

  
Kyan lifted his face up and stared at Kiryuuin with a tear-stained face.

  
“Are you going to join us?”

  
“Sure.”

  
Kyan’s entire face lit up. Together, the four of them made their way to the classroom.

*

Kiryuuin felt like the four of them had been sent back in time, back to when things between them were better. In fact, they didn’t even get bullied as much since most of the other students were too caught up in their own lives to pay any attention to them. But this feeling came crashing to an end when school ended.

  
“Kiryuuin, how did we forget to tell you!” exclaimed Jun. “We’re going to have a club meeting today! We deserve a break and want to celebrate finishing the exam!”

  
“I’m sorry, I have an important top-secret mission to do for Gackt.”

  
Everyone else stopped walking. This was literally the first time that Kiryuuin didn’t come to a club meeting. He even managed to come the day he had to skip school due to bouts of explosive diarrhoea. Eventually Kyan broke the silence.

  
“That’s fine, we understand, Kiryuuin,” said Kyan calmly. However, he reached out and put a hand on Kiryuuin’s shoulder, just as he turned his back to him. “Just be careful, ok?”

*

Kiryuuin wished he could have gone to the superhero club meeting with his friends. But things were different now. They had their part time jobs, and he had a role to fulfil as Gackt’s loyal assistant.

  
The task, albeit top-secret, was not difficult to do. Kiryuuin carefully copied the names of each of the auction winners onto thirteen different envelopes. Then, he emptied the contents of the secret envelope he’d received from Gackt. Inside were the thirteen concert tickets.

  
Kiryuuin carefully checked to make sure that each ticket matched the correct auction winner before stuffing them into the envelopes. Then, guarding them inside his schoolbag, he took them to the post office and posted them, worrying about how busy Gackt must be considering that he hadn’t included any stamps or money for stamps inside the secret envelope.


	6. Chapter 6

Although it had seemed that the others had no reason to doubt what Kiryuuin had told them, any trace of doubts were completely erased that Thursday. They had just finished another day and school and were heading their own ways. Jun, Kenji and Kyan had their part time jobs to go to, so there was no superhero club. Kiryuuin decided to leave with them, thinking about either visiting Jun’s shop or maybe just going home and going to sleep. But just as they left the school gates, they heard the loud screeching sound of tyres as the Gacktmobile skidded to a halt in front of them. The window rolled down, revealing none other than Gackt himself.

  
“Get in, Kiryuuin,” he instructed, his expression obscured by his large sunglasses. “We have a mission to do.”

  
Kiryuuin eagerly reached his hand out to open the door. But before he could open it, he hesitated. Jun had practically died of excitement when Kiryuuin had described the inside of the Gacktmobile. While Kenji had been more subdued than Jun, Kiryuuin knew that he tended to hide his excitement. And Kyan… Well, when they first met, they used to play games together every day. They were both fighting crime with Gackt, and they pretended that Gackt came to pick them up in the Gacktmobile. Sometimes they even drove it! So ,could he really just climb in and ignore his friends?

  
“Don’t worry about us, Kiryuuin,” insisted Kyan as soon as Kiryuuin turned around. “All of us have our part time jobs to get to. We’ve only just started, so we can’t afford to be late. And the same goes for you. You have crimes to stop, and you can’t afford to let Gackt down. Hurry, we can meet up again later."

  
Somewhat reluctantly, Kiryuuin turned his back on his friends and climbed into the front seat of the Gacktmobile. As soon as he closed the door, Gackt sped off, leaving Kyan, Jun and Kenji at the school gates. For a brief moment, Kiryuuin felt a sense of guilt, but that was quickly replaced with excitement and anticipation: He was in Gacktmobile with Gackt, and he was about to start his second mission. But before he could ask Gackt what the mission was, the Gacktmobile skidded to a sudden stop. Kiryuuin hadn’t realised how long he’d been caught up in his own thoughts, but they were no longer in central Tokyo. Instead, they were in a small quiet town near the sea.

  
“Kiryuuin, I’m going to tell you about our next mission,” said Gackt over the sound of the crashing waves. “I must warn you, this is quite a jump up from the last mission. Are you ready?”

  
“Of course I am!” responded Kiryuuin, bobbing his head up and down excitedly.

  
“This time, you’ll be the one taking the lead,” smiled Gackt, handing him a black leather studded dog-collar necklace. “Here, put this on.”

  
Without hesitation, Kiryuuin put the necklace around his neck and fastened it. With a grin, Gackt reached into the glove compartment and pulled out a polaroid camera. He leaned over towards Kiryuuin, held it out in front of his face and with a flash, took a picture of the two of them. He took the picture in one hand and shook it, then with the other began rooting around in the glove compartment again with the other. Eventually he pulled out a black marker. He glanced at the polaroid picture and smiled, before scribbling something on the front of it with the marker.

  
“Here,” grinned Gackt, handing the polaroid to Kiryuuin. “A signed selfie of the two of us.”

  
Kiryuuin was so excited that he managed to drop it. He had to undo his seatbelt so he could reach the floor and grab it. But his excitement turned to confusion when he took a look at the picture. There in the picture was Gackt, with his perfect white smile and dark shades. Above his head was he elegant signature, exactly how Kiryuuin expected it to be. But beside Gackt was… an empty seat. It wasn’t that Gackt had unintentionally cropped him out of the picture or anything: literally the seat that Kiryuuin was sitting in was empty in the picture.

  
“Do you get it?” grinned Gackt.

  
“I… I think I do,” whispered Kiryuuin, sounding a little bit upset. “This is a magic camera. It only takes pictures of real heroes.”

  
Gackt burst out laughing. He laughed so hard that he had to stick his finger underneath his shades to wipe a tear away.

  
“Ah, Kiryuuin, you really do crack me up. How did I ever do these missions without you? A real hero… hahaha. No, that’s not what this is about. In fact, this isn’t even about the camera. Why don’t you take a selfie on your phone?

  
Kiryuuin reluctantly pulled his phone out of his pocket. He was quite self-conscious about how he looked, and never really took selfies. In fact, he wasn’t even too familiar with the camera on his phone. Eventually he managed to set it up. But to his surprise, he couldn’t see himself on his own camera either.

  
“I’m… invisible?” pieced together Kiryuuin.

  
“Yes, that’s right,” nodded Gackt. “You’re invisible. And that’ll be a crucial part of our next mission. Now, fasten your seatbelt and hold on tight.”

  
Kiryuuin did as instructed and instantly felt glad that he had listened. Without warning, the Gacktmobile started moving at such a high speed that Kiryuuin felt as though he was on a plane that was landing on the runway. But the Gacktmobile got faster and faster. Kiryuuin looked out the window to find that everything was a blur of colour. Just as Kiryuuin felt that he couldn’t take it anymore, the Gacktmobile came to a stop.

  
“Good, the invisibility function seems to be working,” muttered Gackt, as Kiryuuin breathed in and out with deep breaths. “Right, your mission is not difficult, Kiryuuin, but it’s essential that you do exactly what I say.”

  
Kiryuuin slowly opened his eyes to discover that they didn’t seem to be in Japan anymore. The area around him seemed familiar: Kiryuuin was certain that he’d seen it on TV or in a film. As Gackt drove around, Kiryuuin noticed that the signs he was seeing were written in English. He looked around and saw cobbled stones and red buses.

  
“Gackt, is this the UK?” asked Kiryuuin eventually, to which Gackt nodded. Within minutes, they had pulled up to what seemed to be a formal outdoor event, with rich looking people gathered around drinking champagne. Some of the clothes looked like they cost more than Kiryuuin’s entire family home did!

  
“Do you see that small older lady who’s wearing pink?” asked Gackt, pointing her out. Kiryuuin squinted and sure enough, he spotted her. He nodded.

  
“That woman is the Queen of England,” explained Gackt. “Do you know Yoshiki from X Japan? At the right moment, I need you to sneak up and pull Yoshiki’s scarf off. Wait until the Queen steps forward to make her speech: that’s when you’re to do it.”

  
“Pull his scarf off?” repeated Kiryuuin, sounding doubtful.

  
“What did I say? Don’t question me!” Gackt screamed suddenly, looking furious. He regained his composure when he saw Kiryuuin flinch back. “Oh… sorry, Kiryuuin. It’s just I’m very nervous about this mission. It’s very important, and I want to make sure you get it right.”

  
“Don’t worry Gackt, I understand. I know you’re stressed,” said Kiryuuin reassuringly. He had been a bit taken aback by Gackt’s outburst, but he could tell just how important this mission was.

  
“You see, I deliberately planted that scarf. I gave it to Yoshiki as a present,” explained Gackt, still looking somewhat apologetic for his outburst. “I need you to pull off his scarf to make him feel flustered. I was supposed to appear on a TV show, but Yoshiki came and took my spot.”

  
“So, we’re getting revenge because he took your spot on a TV show?” confirmed Kiryuuin. Gackt momentarily looked awkward and a bit lost for words. But he quickly pulled himself together.

  
“Oh, I’m sorry, that was unprofessional of me. Superheroes don’t use their powers to sort out personal feuds. I shouldn’t have brought that up at all… please forget I said anything. You see, Yoshiki killed a puppy. With… a scarf.”

  
Kiryuuin’s eyes widened with shock.

  
“A… a puppy?” he repeated, utterly disgusted. “He killed a puppy? But a puppy is so small… it can’t defend itself at all. Why would he do something like that?”

  
“Because he’s an evil bastard!” yelled Gackt, slamming his fist onto the dashboard. “He killed a puppy with a scarf, and that is unforgiveable. Your job is to pull his scarf off, right at the most important moment. Not only will he think that it’s the ghost of the puppy coming back for revenge, but also he’ll end up being embarrassed for causing a scene. Honestly, he deserves a worse punishment, but we’re going to stick to the plan. Oh look, the ceremony is starting! Quickly, get on the stage!”

  
Kiryuuin darted past several reporters holding cameras and quickly made his way onto the stage. He kept muttering what he had to do under his breath, so he wouldn’t lose his focus. But as soon as he stepped onto the stage, his nerves got the better of him, like he was suffering from stage fright despite being invisible. He hadn’t noticed before, since he had only paid attention to the Queen. But the stage was filled with very important people wearing very fancy looking clothes. Kiryuuin felt an awkwardness that was a cross between being the only one in jeans at a fancy wedding dinner and being expected to make a speech with no preparation in a room full of judgemental people. In English. While naked. And with the floor being made of lava. Had Kiryuuin perhaps remembered that he was invisible, perhaps he would have been able to keep his cool. But with everyone in the crowd facing him, and with all the cameras, Kiryuuin felt like the entire world was watching him. He wanted to run away and hide, abandoning the mission. Just as he was debating what to do, he realised that the Queen had already stepped forward. Now was his chance!

  
Kiryuuin sprinted over to where Yoshiki was standing and grabbed the long flowing end of his scarf. He turned around and stepped forward to run. However, he had to put his hands on over his mouth to stop him from yelping out loud. One particularly large man was looking directly at him, his frowning face making it seem as though he could see him. But no, he was invisible… Kiryuuin suddenly remembered that he hadn’t finished his mission yet. He turned to grab the scarf. But to his horror, the scarf was no longer dangling in the air. Instead, it had landed directly **onto the Queen’s shoulder**.

  
Kiryuuin could hear gasps coming from the people around him. No longer able to bare it, he hurried down from the stage, past the hordes of reporters and back towards where the invisible Gacktmobile was parked. He wished that the ground would just swallow him up and he groped around, trying to find it. Eventually his hand clasped around the handle. Kiryuuin pulled open the door and slid into the Gacktmobile. As soon as he did, the inside of the Gacktmobile became visible, and Gackt’s booming laughter filled the air.

  
“Kiryuuin, did you do that?” chortled Gackt as Kiryuuin slumped into the seat beside him.

  
“Gackt I’m so sorry,” mumbled Kiryuuin. “You gave me a chance and I messed it up…”

  
“Messed it up?” repeated Gackt, laughing. “Kiryuuin, you took my idea but made it ten, no, a hundred times funnier! Did you see Yoshiki’s face? Oh my Gackt, the screenshots are on Twitter already!”

  
Kiryuuin stared at Gackt as he scrolled and laughed. He genuinely seemed happy with how things had turned out. Kiryuuin let out a sigh of relief. He had messed up this time, but the pieces had just happened to fall into place. Next time he might not be so lucky.

  
Kiryuuin vowed to himself that he would do his best next time and try not to let his nerves get to him. No matter what, he couldn’t let Gackt, his hero, down.


	7. Chapter 7

Although Kiryuuin had promised himself that he would do better next time, he found that the next missions he was tasked with weren’t too challenging. In fact, he didn’t feel any anxiety at all while carrying them out. First, he picked up Gackt’s dry cleaning (superheroes needed to look presentable), then he picked up a package for him from the post office (could it be an essential part of their next mission?). Next, he was instructed to clean and wash the Gacktmobile (What an honour! He had never thought he’d be able to get so close to the Gacktmobile) and then to bring Gackt food (superheroes had a very busy schedule, but they needed to east just like everyone else did).

  
In order to make sure he could carry out all the tasks Gackt was giving him, Kiryuuin took a job at Lawson the convenience store. After all, he couldn’t leave Gackt to starve just because he ran out of money. Unfortunately, between working with Gackt and doing a part time job, Kiryuuin found his schoolwork suffering. He often ended up sleeping during class. In fact, one day he awoke in the classroom to find that everyone else had already gone home, and it was beginning to get dark. Or so he had thought that everyone had gone home.

  
“Good, you’re awake. I’m worried about you Kiryuuin.”

  
Kiryuuin spun around to find Kyan sitting on a nearby desk, watching over him.

  
Don’t worry, Kyan,” assured Kiryuuin. “You don’t have to worry about me. I just stay up too late, that’s all.”

  
“Have you been doing a lot of work for Gackt recently?”

  
“Well… yes, I have. But I want to do it. Besides, that’s not why I’m tired.”

  
“Just make sure you take care of yourself,” said Kyan, not sounding convinced. “Hey, we’ve got a science test tomorrow afternoon. I know you haven’t been taking notes because I’ve watched you sleep though the last five science classes. Do you want to come in early so we can study together? You can look at my notes.”

  
“Tomorrow afternoon?” repeated Kiryuuin, rubbing his tired eyes. “Ah… well, I have something to do tomorrow afternoon...”

  
“Kiryuuin, I know you’re eager to work for Gackt,” began Kyan, his serious eyes brimming with concern. “But maybe sometimes you have to put yourself first, no? Perhaps you could ask Gackt if you could do whatever you’re doing for him at a different time?”

  
“That’s not how the superhero life works, Kyan,” argued Kiryuuin, frustrated that Kyan wasn’t understanding him. “Gackt’s dogs are on a very strict schedule. If I change their walking times even by an hour-"

  
“So, you’re skipping a test to walk Gackt’s dogs,” said Kyan flatly.

  
“It’s not like that! Think about it! Gackt spends all his time caring about other people. He’s out there taking care of the world, so he has no time to take care of himself! Gackt needs me to do these basic things for him, because he doesn’t have the time to spare-"

  
“And you do? Kiryuuin, you can’t put your own life on hold just because Gackt wants you to do these things. You have to think of your own life-"

  
Kiryuuin sighed. He really wished Kyan would understand. On the surface, it may seem that what he was doing was unimportant. But if he didn’t do these things, then Gackt might not have the time to save the world. Kiryuuin gave Kyan a sad smile before leaving the room.

*

“Great work, Kiryuuin!” beamed Gackt, not taking his eyes off the road. “That beanbag you picked up for me is a lifesaver! There’s no way I’d be able to relax after a long, hard day of saving the world if it wasn’t for you!”

  
Kiryuuin smiled shyly back. He felt proud that Gackt was praising him. And yet, there was a little voice in the back of his mind that was that was whispering, begging for a bigger task. Of course, he’d been a ball of nerves when he’d been granted his first big task. But the feeling afterwards was indescribable: he felt as though he’d never see Gackt as proud of him as he had been that night.

  
“Kiryuuin, I have another big mission for you,” said Gackt suddenly, as though he had read his mind. “You remember the invisibility device you used last time? Well, we’ll be using it again. Both of us will. Now I must warn you, we’re dealing with someone much more dangerous than an interview stealer- I mean a puppy killer.”

  
Kiryuuin’s eyes widened. What possibly could be worse than a puppy killer? He shuddered at the thought. Gackt nodded, his expression grim.

  
“Yes, we’re dealing with an extremely dangerous person here. Put on the device and follow my lead. Make sure you follow my every instruction. Otherwise, something terrible could happen.

  
Kiryuuin tore his eyes away from his scared-looking reflection in the black window of the car and followed Gackt’s instructions. Once again, he turned back, trying to make himself look braver than he felt. But of course, all he could see were the dark streets of Tokyo.

*

The Gacktmobile came to a halt. Kiryuuin stepped out and was surprised to see a building with many izakayas. Was the criminal waiting inside? But before he could ask, he felt Gackt’s invisible hand grab him by the arm and pull him along.

  
“Gackt,” whispered Kiryuuin urgently. “You haven’t told me what I’m supposed to do. Isn’t this guy really dangerous?”

  
“Trust me, Kiryuuin,” whispered back an invisible Gackt. “There’s a big party going on in there, so people won’t notice our voices if we whisper. I trust you Kiryuuin, so you have to trust me, ok?”

  
Kiryuuin nodded eagerly, before remembering that Gackt couldn’t see him. He then said “ _Ok!_ ” a little too loudly, before the two of them started climbing the stairs, Gackt holding onto his arm so that they wouldn’t get separated. Eventually they came to a sudden halt.

  
“That’s our target,” hissed Gackt, pointing to a man with several piercings.

  
In front of them were two men, dressed in visual kei style clothing. They were standing on the stairs by the window, having a chat. Just a bit above them, a loud party was in progress. It seemed as though the two had slipped away to discuss something… perhaps an evil plan?

  
Kiryuuin craned his neck to get a look at the target. He was shocked to realise that he knew the target: It was Hitsugi from the band Nightmare. Beside him was… Meto from Mejibray? (He wasn’t sure, but he vaguely remembered Jun showing him a picture of him). But what could Hitsugi from Nightmare have done that was so bad? Kiryuuin was glad he was invisible: there was no way he’d be able to hide the surprise on his face.

  
“Right, Kiryuuin, I need you to get on your hands and knees and wait by the window,” whispered Gackt. “I’ll tell you what to do after that. Cough when you’re in position.”

  
Kiryuuin was a little confused, but now was not the time for questions. As quietly as he could, he crept past the two men and got into position. He let out a small cough.

  
What happened next was so quick that Kiryuuin couldn’t process what happened. Before he had the chance to look up, he felt a sharp pain in his lower back. Then, there was the piercing sound of shattering glass.

  
“Kiryuuin, stand up!” urged Gackt. “We have to get out of here.”

  
Kiryuuin leapt up, wincing as he did. Then he glanced out the window. His stomach sank. Several floors down, both Hitsugi and Meto were lying in a heap, bits of broken glass covering them. Neither were moving, and Kiryuuin was certain he could see blood. But, without a word, he hurried after Gackt down the stairs. They hurried into the Gacktmobile, the sound of sirens piercing the night.

  
“That’ll show him for copying me,” hissed Gackt, starting up the engine as he removed his invisibility collar. Kiryuuin, who had also removed his collar, stared in shocked silence.

  
“It’s dangerous for people to copy my image,” clarified Gackt, after realising how silent Kiryuuin had become. “The vocalist of Nightmare, Yomi, copies my voice. And Hitsugi is copying my fashion sense. If they continue copying me, people might mix us up. And it’s dangerous for people to think that people like them are superheroes.”

  
“But… what about Meto?” asked Kiryuuin, unconvinced.

  
“Meto was working together with Hitsugi, so he could not be ignored. Besides, you have no idea what they were planning. They were going to take you down, Kiryuuin, perhaps even kill you so they could take your place. Then they were going to bide their time, before trying to take me down. Not that they could have managed that, of course. But we can’t have people like that running around can we?”

  
Kiryuuin felt quite shaken up. He knew that Gackt was doing his best to keep the world safe. Also, Gackt knew much more about what was going on in the criminal world than he did. But he couldn’t shake the image of the lifeless looking Hitsugi and Meto from his mind. How far had they fallen? Were they going to be ok? Was it possible that they had… died?

  
Kiryuuin nodded, feebly mumbling “Yeah, you’re right” to Gackt, before turning away and staring out the window. He didn’t want Gackt to see that he had tears in his eyes.

*

Kiryuuin arrived somewhat late to school, red-eyed after a sleepless night. He had spent all night thinking about what had happened. Gackt was a superhero, and superheroes chased the bad guys. Which probably meant that Hitsugi was a bad guy. But was turning invisible and knocking people out of windows really the kind of thing that superheroes were supposed to do? Besides, Gackt had mentioned that Meto was working with Hitsugi, but hadn’t really elaborated on what he had done. Did spending time with a bad person make you a bad person yourself? And was it really ok for good people to push “bad” people out windows for doing evil deeds? Kiryuuin tried to convince himself that there was deep reason for what had happened the night before. But with the information he had, he felt that he couldn’t really justify it.

  
Kiryuuin had intended to go straight to class, but he felt that he couldn’t face it right now. Besides, if he walked in late, the whole class would turn to look at him as he walked in. And he honestly just couldn’t face the idea of all those judging faces staring at him.

  
Kiryuuin headed to the superhero club room to escape from it all. So naturally, he was surprised when he opened the door to find Kyan, Jun and Kenji there, despite class having started over fifteen minutes ago. Kenji had his arm around Jun, who was shaking as he sobbed, his phone in his hand.

  
“I spent ages… ages working at my job to earn enough money to go to Nightmare’s anniversary tour,” he sniffled. “And now… now…”

  
“Hey, I’m sure they’re just postponing it,” assured Kenji. “You’ll just have to wait a little bit longer, but I’m sure you’ll still get to see them.”

  
“It’s not just that,” continued Jun, wiping his eyes. “Hitsugi is really hurt. He’s broken several bones. There aren’t many details yet, but if they’re postponing their tour, then it must be pretty bad…”

  
“What about Meto?” asked Kiryuuin grimly, joining in the conversation.

  
“I don’t know,” responded Jun sadly. “Mejibray updated their page to say that he was in the hospital, but they didn’t say how bad he is. Do you think there’s a connection between the two?”

  
“I didn’t realise you were so up to date with visual kei, Kiryuuin,” said Kenji, sounding somewhat surprised. However, he winked at him, before indicating towards Jun with his head. “Hey, Jun, tell Kiryuuin about the time Meto came into your shop.”

  
Instantly, Jun’s face lit up, this happy memory distracting him from the current situation.

  
“Wait, I haven’t told you this already?” beamed Jun, his eyes sparkling through the tears. “You won’t believe it at all. Before I started working there, Mejibray came to the shop for an event and signed a poster before I started working there. It’s hanging up behind the counter. But for some reason, Meto couldn’t make it that day, so just the other members signed it. I was a bit put out, since Meto is my favourite member. But one day, someone came in with a facemask on and… it was Meto, Kiryuuin! He said that he had come to sign the poster! I was so excited that while he was signing it, I begged him to sign my notebook. And he did, Kiryuuin! He signed my notebook, and even said I was cute!”

  
Jun was holding out the notebook, Meto’s signature sprawled across two pages. He was grinning, clearly delighted that he had been lucky enough to meet him. But then his face fell, as he remembered what had just happened. He began to refresh Mejibray’s official website and Meto’s twitter over and over again on his phone, his face filled with concern.

  
“Come on, Jun, let’s get ready for class,” suggested Kenji, pulling on his arm. “It’ll help take your mind off things.”

  
After they left, there was a few moments of silence between Kyan and Kiryuuin. Eventually Kyan spoke.

  
“Kiryuuin, you look absolutely shattered. Did you even sleep at all?” asked Kyan, looking concerned. “I doubt you were up all night worrying about visual kei band members so… what is it? Is everything going ok with Gackt? He didn’t make you do anything you feel uncomfortable with, did he?”

  
Of course not!” insisted Kiryuuin, almost too quickly. Kyan just shrugged, looking somewhat defeated. He followed Jun and Kenji out of the room.

  
For the first time, Kiryuuin felt that there was absolutely no way that he could share what happened with his friends. Up until now, he felt that he had been able to explain his and Gackt’s actions. But this was different. How would Jun react if he told him that he was the reason Meto and Hitsugi were hospitalised? He wouldn’t be surprised if Jun chose to never speak to him again.

  
And yet… yet he wished he had someone to talk to. Jun probably wouldn’t have understood, and Kenji would have probably taken Jun’s side. But what about Kyan? Kiryuuin had thrown away a lot to become Gackt’s assistant. What would Kyan think if he was having second thoughts? But were these second thoughts? Perhaps he was just weak, and unable to keep up with the real superhero lifestyle. Did all superheroes have to make these kind of sacrifices to make the world a better place? Kiryuuin stared sadly after Kyan, wishing he had some way he could talk to him. But he knew he couldn’t. Instead, Kiryuuin followed after him, his thoughts bogged down by the images of Meto and Hitsugi’s battered bodies still vivid in his mind.


	8. Chapter 8

For the first time ever, Kiryuuin felt a sense of dread when he got the message from Gackt saying that they’d be doing another big mission. He had been perfectly content with mowing Gackt’s lawn, painting his fences and dusting his collection of hula hoops. But Kiryuuin decided to put his feelings aside and head to their arranged meeting point. He still felt guilty about what happened, but if he couldn’t trust Gackt, then who could he trust?

  
“No questions, just follow my orders,” snapped Gackt, as soon as Kiryuuin sat down beside him in the Gacktmobile. “This is the worst offender yet, so it’s crucial that we take him down. Follow my instructions exactly.”

  
Before, Kiryuuin would have felt excited by the idea that Gackt was allowing him to help out with such an important mission. But all he could feel was apprehension. According to Jun, Hitsugi and Meto were still in the hospital. What were they going to do next? Would anyone get hurt? Kiryuuin was so caught up in his own thoughts that he didn’t even notice that Gackt had handed him a piece of paper. To his surprise, it was a picture of a gorgeous white pure white cat with a black tail and a few black markings.

  
“We’re going to look for a missing cat?” questioned Kiryuuin, feeling a bit more hopeful.

  
“No,” answered Gackt almost angrily. “We’re… I mean, yes. That’s it. We’re rescuing a lost little kitty.”

  
Kiryuuin’s face split into a huge smile.

  
“Wait, does that mean you know where this cat is? Are we going to able to give it to the owner? I can’t wait to see their face!”

  
“We’re here,” announced Gackt, the Gacktmobile coming to a sudden stop.

  
Kiryuuin looked out to find a tall apartment building on the outskirts of Tokyo. He looked around, before turning to Gackt, confused.

  
“I don’t get it,” began Kiryuuin. “Is the cat outside the building or…”

  
“No, it’s in there,” replied Gackt, pointing to an apartment on the third floor. “I need you to climb up the building, break in and steal the cat.”

  
“S-steal?” repeated Kiryuuin, his voice shaking. He knew that stealing definitely wasn’t something that superheroes should be doing.

  
“No, not stealing as such,” continued Gackt, catching himself. “What I meant was… saving. We’re saving this cat from a bad owner. Now hurry, he’ll be back soon.”

  
Kiryuuin wasn’t ready: he had so many questions. But he felt that he had no choice. Kiryuuin activated his invisibility device, stepped out of the Gacktmobile and, with a deep breath, began to climb the walls of the apartment building. Kiryuuin had never been particularly good at any sports or physical activity. But he never could have imagined how difficult it would be to climb a wall. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t get more than a few inches off the ground.

  
“Oi, are you still not up there?” yelled Gackt from the Gacktmobile. “Wow, you’re slow. Here, use these.”

  
Gackt threw something out of the window of the Gacktmobile. Upon closer inspection, Kiryuuin realised that it was a pair of gloves with suction cups on the fingertips. Kiryuuin pulled them over his invisible hands, doubting that they’d work. The gloves on his invisible fingers were eerily floating in the air, looking at though they were being held up by a ghost. Realising that he could draw attention to himself like this, Kiryuuin hurried back over to the wall. To his surprise, the gloves actually worked, and he was able to scale the wall with little effort. The trouble came when he got to the right apartment: it was difficult for him to pull himself over with his sticky fingers. With a crash, Kiryuuin toppled into the balcony, badly scraping his elbow as he did.

  
Unable to check the damage, Kiryuuin bared the pain and quickly slid the glass door open. He removed his shoes (which became visible as soon as they left his body) and slipped inside.

  
The walls of the apartment were covered in Motley Crue, Ziggy and Disney posters. In the corner, there was a drum set. The black and white bed was covered in hamster plushies. And then Kiryuuin spotted what he was looking for: the white cat with the black tail.

  
The cat was sitting on a cat tower, surrounded by various toys. Although he was invisible, the cat seemed to sense his presence. It leapt up from its tower, jumped to the floor and sat at Kiryuuin’s feet, giving off a curious meow.

  
From the cat’s attitude to the number of toys, Kiryuuin had a bad feeling that there was something up. Would a bad owner really put so much effort in taking care of a cat? But Kiryuuin didn’t have time to think about it. He easily scooped the cat into his arms. The cat happily wrapped itself around his neck, resting on his shoulders. Kiryuuin hurried back onto the balcony, putting on his shoes as he shut the door behind him. He hurriedly climbed back down with the cat on his shoulders, taking care not to fall this time. Only when he sat back down in the Gacktmobile did he remove his invisibility device.

  
“Good work, Kiryuuin.” Gackt praised him as soon as the door opened. He shoved a cardboard box at him. “Now, throw that thing in there. We don’t have time to waste.”

  
Gackt drove away, leaving the greyish apartment building behind them. Within minutes, Kiryuuin realised where they were heading. The buildings around them were gradually starting to look more luxurious, and all around them were various branded shops. Eventually they pulled up to Gackt’s gated house.

  
“Right, I’ve got some important business to attend to,” explained Gackt. “As for you, there’s a sink in my house that needs unclogging. I can leave that to you, right?”

  
“Yes, but… what about the cat?”

  
“Ugggh, get it out of my sight. And don’t let it into my house. I hate cats.”

  
With that, Gackt sped off, leaving Kiryuuin standing alone with the cat in the cardboard box. Kiryuuin didn’t want to disobey Gackt, but he couldn’t allow the cat that he had just rescued to escape. Hoping that Gackt wouldn’t mind, Kiryuuin left the box in the genkan and got straight to work.

*

A few hours later, Gackt returned to pick Kiryuuin up for the second part of their mission. Kiryuuin had no idea of how to unblock a sink, but, after watching a few videos online, he gave it his best shot and was eventually successful. Feeling worn out, he opened the door to the back seat of the Gacktmobile.

  
“Oi, don’t put that in there,” ordered Gackt. “I don’t want cat hair on my- I mean, our important … supplies. Put it in the boot.”

  
Kiryuuin closed the door on the various branded clothing store shopping bags that had appeared in the back seat over the last few hours. Feeling guilty, he opened up the boot and placed the box inside, doing his best to position it so that it wouldn’t move around too much. He then joined Gackt in the front seat and endured yet another silent trip.

  
Before long, they arrived at a rock-themed café. Kiryuuin was confused, but Gackt didn’t offer any explanation. Kiryuuin followed him inside until they stopped in front of a blond-haired man who was sitting at the counter seat. The man looked up when they arrived, his long hair swinging to the side. His pierced lips trembled as he struggled to hold back tears.

  
“H-have you seen my cat?” asked the man, showing them a picture with his phone in his right hand, a box of pink Koala March sweets in his left. Kiryuuin’s heart sank when he saw the picture: without a doubt it was the cat that was currently sitting in a cardboard box in the boot of the Gacktmobile.

  
“Oh, you lost your cat?” jeered Gackt. Kiryuuin was shocked by his tone. “Well, I didn’t expect much from you, considering you’re a friend of Kozi’s.”

  
“Hey, leave Chargeeeeee alone!” insisted a blue-haired man who was standing at nearby.

  
“Or what?” sneered Gackt. He turned to Kiryuuin. “Kiryuuin, take his sweets and smash them.”

  
“What?”

  
“YOU DARE QUESTION MY ORDERS?”

  
Kiryuuin jumped. Before he could even process what was happening, he had already grabbed the blond-man’s sweets. The two locked eyes, Kiryuuin’s apologetic eyes staring into Chargeeeeee’s hurt and confused ones. Then, afraid of making Gackt angrier, Kiryuuin dropped the sweets on the floor and stamped on them several times. When he removed his foot, the box was flat, with bits of pink chocolate and crumbled biscuits surrounding it.

  
“Why would you do that?” asked Chargeeeeee, tears welling up in his eyes. Kiryuuin just stared back, unable to give a good reason.

  
“Don’t worry, Chargeeeeee,” said a black-haired stylish man comfortingly. “I’m sure we’ll find Sadaharu soon. He’s a pretty distinctive cat after all.”

  
“Let’s go,” instructed Gackt, just as the blue-haired man made a start towards them. They left the café and climbed back into the Gacktmobile.

  
“Don’t look so miserable,” smiled Gackt, glancing over at Kiryuuin. “Besides, there’s no way he’s going to know that you took the cat. Since you left the door open, he probably thinks that it just got out.”

  
“B-but I didn’t leave the door open,” stuttered Kiryuuin.

  
“What?!?” thundered Gackt. “You deliberately ignored by orders and-"

  
“You never said to leave it open. And I fell! My blood is there and-"

  
“DON’T TALK WHEN I AM TALKING!!!”

  
Kiryuuin flinched. Gackt laughed, trying to change the atmosphere. But behind his dark shades his eyes were cold.

  
“Well, Kiryuuin, it looks like you made some rookie mistakes today,” said Gackt quietly. “I had high hopes for you, but even the best of the best can crumble under such high expectations. That will be all for today. You may leave.”

  
Gackt pulled over. Kiryuuin was stunned: he was nowhere near his house. Without a word, he stumbled out of the car and headed towards the boot. The cat gave a meow as he lifted the box out. He headed back over to the open passenger door.

  
“What about the cat, Gackt?” asked Kiryuuin, his voice quivering. “I don’t know why you thought that he had a bad owner, but, well, we have to think of the cat’s well-being. What should I do with it?”

  
“Good grief!” exclaimed Gackt. “I had forgotten about that thing. Make sure you dispose of it.”

  
And with that, Gackt sped off, leaving Kiryuuin with more questions than answers.

*

Kiryuuin wasn’t really sure what Gackt had meant by “dispose of it”. But he knew he didn’t want to find out. He looked up from his phone to spot Sadaharu the cat jumping playfully onto the foot of his bed. He gave the cat a weak smile: this was just another adventure to Sadaharu. He had no idea that he had been kidnapped, how much his owner was worrying about him and how much danger he could have been in.

  
Kiryuuin turned his attention back to his phone. After hearing Gackt mention that Chargeeeeee was friends with Kozi, it took him no time at all to find his social media pages. As soon as he discovered them, his heart sank. All of his pages were covered in pictures of his cat, and pleas for help finding him. His fans and followers were sympathetic, but Kiryuuin knew that they stood no chance of finding him. The post about the missing cat seemed endless: Chargeeeeee had even tried writing a few in English out of desperation. One particular post caught Kiryuuin’s eye. It included a picture of Chargeeeeee holding Sadaharu, who had been a tiny kitten at the time. The post was covered with crying emojis.

  
_Sadaharu, please come home save. I love you! I need you! You make me happy! Please, anyone, if you know where Sadaharu is, tell me. He makes me so happy. I don’t know what to do without him._

  
Kiryuuin felt overwhelmed by guilt. While he had only met Chargeeeeee briefly, he hadn’t seemed like a bad guy at all. Moreover, the cat stretching its paws at the end of the bed seemed nowhere close to being mistreated or injured: in fact, it looked very well-cared for. So Kiryuuin felt that Gackt had lied… no, perhaps been misinformed about that part. So, that left only one reason for Chargeeeeee being a target. Gackt had said it himself, but no matter how many times Kiryuuin repeated it in his head, he just couldn’t come up with a reason for it being a bad thing: Chargeeeeee was friends with Kozi. That’s all that he was “guilty” of.

  
Of course, being a major Gackt fan, Kiryuuin knew that things weren’t good between Gackt and Kozi. In fact, Kiryuuin was pretty sure they hadn’t spoken to each other since they had fallen out all those years ago. But for Gackt, that was a personal issue, not a crime that had to be solved. Taking Chargeeeeee’s cat wasn’t benefiting the world or stopping crime, it was just hurting him simply because he was friends with someone Gackt didn’t like. And that just wasn’t right.

  
Kiryuuin had made up his mind. He stood up, grabbed the cat and headed towards the front door.

*

It took Kiryuuin quite some time to find the apartment building again, especially since he didn’t have the Gacktmobile to take him there. But eventually he managed to pick it out from all the other tall grey buildings. Taking a deep breath, he headed towards the stairs, feeling some relief that he did not have to climb up the walls again. By the time he reached the front door, he was still unsure of what he was going to say. But there was no turning back now. He raised his slightly trembling fist and knocked on the door. After a few seconds, the door swung open, revealing the blond man with the lip ring from before.

  
“Sadaharu!” screamed Chargeeeeee, his eyes wide with surprise and glee. In a flash, Sadaharu the cat had been ripped from Kiryuuin’s arms, and Chargeeeeee was dancing around the apartment with him, singing “ _okaeri, Sadaharu_ ”. Kiryuuin couldn’t help but smile, even though he still felt nervous. It was clear from Chargeeeeee’s reaction that this cat was well loved.

  
“Thank you so much!” beamed Chargeeeeee, rushing over to Kiryuuin after several minutes of dancing with his cat. “You found my cat. You really are the best! Please, come in!”

  
“Really, I’m not,” muttered Kiryuuin, feeling ashamed. He removed his shoes and followed Chargeeeeee into the apartment. Unknown to Chargeeeeee, this was actually his second time being inside. Kiryuuin hesitated, before handing Chargeeeeee the bag that he had been carrying.

  
“It’s not much, but I want you to have it,” mumbled Kiryuuin, unable to meet Chargeeeeee’s gaze. “I- I’m so sorry for smashing your sweets earlier.”

  
“Wow, Koala March!” yelled Chargeeeeee excitedly, ruffling through the contents of the bag. “There has to be at least fifteen packets! Thank you so much! You saved Sadaharu and brought me my favourite sweets when I was sad. You’re a hero!”

  
Chargeeeeee’s expression changed to one of surprise when he realised that Kiryuuin was shaking, tears streaming down his face as he sobbed.

  
“Hey, what’s wrong?” asked Chargeeeeee, looking concerned. “Do you want some koala sweets?”

  
“I- I’m not a hero!” stammered Kiryuuin through his sobs. “I- I’m the one who stole Sadaharu!”

  
Chargeeeeee’s eyes widened with shock, but he quickly composed himself.

  
“Here, sit down” he said calmly, gesturing to the hamster-plushie covered sofa. “Sit down and tell me all about it.”

  
And so he did. Kiryuuin explained how Gackt was his hero, and how he thought that they could change the world together. He told him about how Gackt had said that Sadaharu had been in danger, so Kiryuuin felt that he had no choice but to save him. He even opened up about how he was starting to doubt Gackt, especially since he’s ordered him to do much malicious things.

  
“S-so please, don’t call me a h-hero,” whispered Kiryuuin, his eyes brimming with fresh tears. “I stole your cat and was horrible to you. I’m not a hero. I’m… I’m…”

  
“Please, don’t be so hard on yourself,” said Chargeeeeee soothingly. To Kiryuuin’s surprise, he put his arms around him and pulled him into a hug, allowing him to rest his head on Chargeeeeee’s shoulder. “Just like you figured out that I’m not a bad cat owner, I too can see that you are not a bad person. You did what you thought was right, and tried to save my cat from danger. Then, when you realised that you had made a mistake, you chose to do the right thing and bring my cat back to me. More still, rather than just leaving the cat outside my door and running away, you decided to knock on my door and tell me the truth. Do you realise how difficult it can be to do the right thing, Kiryuuin? There aren’t many people that would be brave and honest enough to do that. And in my eyes, that’s what a true hero is.”

  
Kiryuuin broke down. He had no idea how he had expected Chargeeeeee to react, but he didn’t think it’d be like this. He was practically howling now, unable to hold back his emotions. Chargeeeeee laughed and patted him on the shoulder.

  
“Hey, you should be happy,” laughed Chargeeeeee. Sadaharu is back! Oh my God, I have to tell the others! They’re still looking for him. And we’re going to have a party… a Sadaharu party! Kiryuuin, do you want to join us?”

  
Kiryuuin couldn’t believe how that night went. In the space of a few hours, he went from feeling like he could end up in a jail cell to feeling more like a superhero than he had ever felt before. Chargeeeeee wasn’t angry at him, and even his friends were understanding once the situation was explained to them. Before long, they were all digging into a cat-shaped cake, beers in hand (Kiryuuin, not wanting to break the law, drank oolong tea) and they toasted to both the well-being of Sadaharu, as well as doing the right thing. Sadaharu, who had been napping on top of the cat tower, was woken up by Chargeeeeee so that they could all take pictures together.

Chargeeeeee’s friends and followers were relieved, and they were delighted to be included in the celebration. For the first time in a while, Kiryuuin felt truly happy and confident. He had done the right thing, even though that had meant turning on Gackt.


	9. Chapter 9

Later on that evening, after Kiryuuin had said his goodbyes and gone home, he received a call from Gackt. Usually he answered straight away. But he knew in his heart that he didn’t want to talk to Gackt right now. He waited until the call rang out before turning his phone off.

  
The next day, Kiryuuin was on his way to school when he heard the familiar sound of the Gacktmobile. He turned and sure enough, the Gacktmobile had just skidded to a stop beside him. Kiryuuin stood rooted to the spot.

  
“Oi, get in,” ordered Gackt, sticking his head out the window. Kiryuuin felt as though he was on autopilot. He climbed into the passenger seat beside Gackt and the two drove off. Gackt got straight to the point.

  
“When I said dispose of the cat, I didn’t mean take it back to the owner,” snarled Gackt, shoving his phone into Kiryuuin’s hand. Kiryuuin’s heart sank when he saw it and realised where he had made his mistake. On the screen was Chargeeeeee’s Instagram, which was covered in pictures of the party they had had last night upon the return of Sadaharu.

  
“But you’re lucky, since we have a mission that’s much more important than that one,” continued Gackt, doing his best to hide his anger with a fake smile. “You’re new after all, so it’s natural that you’d make some mistakes. Our next target is Yu~ki. He has started his own jewellery business and we’re going to sabotage it.”

  
“Why would we do that? He’s just trying to make a living for himself,” objected Kiryuuin. “Besides, he’s not active in the visual kei scene. Why should he get dragged into this feud?”

  
“He called me arrogant in an interview once,” protested Gackt, looking more and more angry. “I can’t have people tarnishing my image like that. He has to be punished. We’re going to go to the place where he stores his products and burn it down.”

  
“B-burn it down?” repeated Kiryuuin incredulously. But his shock deepened when Gackt showed him a picture of the location. “But Gackt, this is an apartment! He must be running his business from his home! If we burned it down, Yu~ki wouldn’t just be losing his business, he’d be left homeless too! Not to mention the fact that we could hurt, maybe even kill, him or the people living near him!”

  
“Are you disobeying my orders, Kiryuuin?” asked Gackt menacingly. Kiryuuin faltered a bit under his threatening gaze, but he managed to pull himself together.

  
“Yes, I am!” shouted Kiryuuin confidently. “It’s not right to burn someone’s livelihood down, and it’s certainly not the kind of thing that superheroes do. I refuse to be a part of it! Besides, the last target was innocent! You said he was a bad owner, but he’s nothing of the sort!”

  
Gackt looked as though he was going to explode with rage. But then he began to laugh, a laugh that sent shivers down Kiryuuin’s spine.

  
“Kiryuuin, Kiryuuin, Kiryuuin, you’re not starting to doubt me, are you? You must understand, the life of a superhero is complicated. There are things that you don’t understand. But I can assure you, everything we have done up to now has been for the greater good. Chargeeeeee is friends with Kozi. And Kozi made fun of me. He put up a picture of himself eating a banana, making fun of that advertisement I did. And I cannot stand for that, having my image tarnished. So, he and the people closest to him had to be punished.”

  
“Next, Hitsugi and Meto. Hitsugi was copying my style, as was Yomi from his band, Nightmare. And Meto… well Meto looked up to Hitsugi, and we couldn’t let the chance to get both of them slip by now, can we? And Yoshiki… I’ll never forgive him. That TV interview-stealing bastard. He’ll think twice about doing that again. And he was considering joining my next poker game, so two birds one stone, I guess.”

  
Gackt laughed manically. Kiryuuin turned pale.

  
“I thought you said he was a puppy killer.”

  
“Puppy killer, interview stealer, poker cheat, they’re all the same.”

  
“No, Gackt, they’re not. No-one loses their life if your spot in an interview is taken. Besides, how were you certain that the interview spot was for you? And… wait, you said that he’s a poker cheat, but he’s only considering joining the game. How can he be a cheat if he hasn’t even played yet?”

  
“I dunno, you can tell by the way he dresses,” shrugged Gackt. “He looks like the type to cheat. And if someone is willing to cheat at poker, then they’d surely kill a puppy.”

  
Kiryuuin shook his head in utter disbelief.

  
“So, you led me to believe that Yoshiki had killed an animal, just because you had a personal grudge? And to steal someone’s beloved pet because you don’t like their friend? And to send two people to the hospital because you think they might be copying you? And now… you want me to destroy someone’s livelihood because of one comment they made that you don’t like? I was starting to think that you were misleading me, Gackt. But now I know better. You were manipulating me, making me do all your dirty work so you could lash out at you’re the people you hold a grudge against. Well I’m done with this. You’re not the superhero I looked up to.”

  
“Kiryuuin, you’re to burn down his apartment this instant!” roared Gackt with such ferociousness that Kiryuuin jumped. The Gacktmobile skidded to a halt and Gackt ripped off his dark shades to glare at Kiryuuin with his piercing blue eyes. Kiryuuin felt very frightened, but he kept his cool.

  
“No, I won’t do it, Gackt. Because I am a superhero. And superheroes don’t do such bad things.”

  
And with that, Kiryuuin unfastened his seatbelt, opened the door and ran as fast as he could away from the Gacktmobile. Behind him, he could hear Gackt’s frightening screams shatter the still silence of the morning.

  
“Mark my words, Kiryuuin Shou. I will not allow you to defy me. You’ll pay for this!”

*

Kiryuuin didn’t stop running until he burst into the superhero club at school, almost hitting Jun square in the face.

  
“Kiryuuin! It’s you” gasped Jun excitedly, as Kiryuuin gasped for breath, doubled over from running so fast. “I tried calling you last night, but your phone was off. You won’t believe it! Hitsugi and Meto are out of the hospital, and Nightmare are going to perform this weekend!"

  
“Wow… Jun… that’s… great…” panted Kiryuuin. He was still shaken up from his encounter with Gackt, but he was genuinely happy for Jun. Music meant the world to Jun, and he had felt so bad for him when the concert was postponed. Not just that, but since the two were out of the hospital, that meant that they were recovering from their injuries. Kiryuuin couldn’t help but feel a strong wave of relief wash over him.

  
“Oh no, class starts in two minutes!” squeaked Kenji. “And I haven’t done my homework!”

  
“Don’t worry, you can copy mine!” insisted Jun, the two running out of the room together, leaving Kyan and Kiryuuin alone.

  
“Hey, Kiryuuin, I’ve been saying this a lot lately, but… I’m worried about you,” admitted Kyan. “After Jun couldn’t reach you last night, I called you a couple of times. Actually, I called you a lot of times. But you didn’t pick up at all."

  
“Oh yeah, my phone died,” lied Kiryuuin. “Sorry about that.”

  
But Kyan wasn’t convinced.

  
“Kiryuuin, I didn’t just call you once or twice. I called you several times throughout the night. And I couldn’t get through even once. What about Gackt? I thought you always had to be ready in case he called you.”

  
Kiryuuin’s heart skipped a beat.

  
“Oh, uh, well, you see, um,,, things aren’t as busy right now and… Gackt said I could have the night off. And, well…”

  
Kiryuuin trailed off as Kyan peered into his eyes, clearly unconvinced. Normally, Kiryuuin would get even more flustered in a situation like this. But the familiar sound of the screeching of the Gacktmobile’s tyres filled his ears. He knew what he had to do.

  
“Kyan, you go ahead to class,” instructed Kiryuuin. “There’s something I have to do.”

*

“Well, well, well, you’ve decided to show your face,” sneered Gackt, slamming the door of the Gacktmobile and stepping out into the empty schoolyard. “You’re dead, Kiryuuin Shou. Any last words? It’s a pity, really. I found you crying alone in the streets, and still nothing has changed. You’ll always be alone, Kiryuuin.”

  
“You’re wrong! Kiryuuin isn’t alone!” shouted a familiar voice. Kiryuuin spun around to see Kyan running towards him, Kenji and Jun following behind. The three of them were wearing their superhero masks, Kyan holding a fourth in his hand. As soon as he reached Kiryuuin, he slapped it enthusiastically onto his face. The four were reunited once more.

  
“I thought you guys were in class,” stammered Kiryuuin, unable to believe what was happening.

  
“Yeah, well we’re your friends,” said Kenji simply.

  
“And crime doesn’t follow our class schedule,” added Jun.

  
“And I failed my music test, so I’m ready to commit to this superhero life!” roared Kyan, throwing a banana at Gackt’s head.

  
“You!” screeched Gackt, pointing a finger at Kyan. “You dare mock me for that advertisement I did! I’ll have you know that bananas are a good source of potassium, and superheroes-"

  
“You don’t know shit about superheroes!” retorted Kyan angrily. “And that banana was for lunch! You made me waste my lunch on the likes of you!”

  
Gackt let out a roar of pure rage. The opened the palm of his right hand, and a beam of Vanilla-scented light emitted from it. Kiryuuin pushed Kyan out of the way, taking the full force of the blast himself. He stumbled, but somehow managed to stay on his feet.

  
“Kiryuuin!” wailed Kyan, dramatically pulling him into his arms. He then glared at Gackt. “Stay away from my boyfriend!”

  
“We haven’t gotten back together yet,” mumbled Kiryuuin in Kyan’s ear.

  
“Well, it’ll sound more dramatic if we put it that way,” winked Kyan. The pair of them giggled softly, before slowly remembering that they were in the middle of a battle. They pulled away from each other to discover that Gackt was ready to strike again, his palm outstretched.

  
“Oh my God, look at dat ass!” screamed Jun, his cheeks blushing.

  
Everyone stopped what they were doing to turn and look. Before them, Kenji had removed his pants to reveal his perfectly round ass, his most private bits hidden from sight by a revealing pink thong. Kiryuuin had heard the legend of Kenji’s perfect ass from Jun many-a-time. He had assumed that Jun had been exaggerating a bit. But that assumption had been incorrect. Kenji’s ass truly was a gift from the gods.

  
“You wanna touch it, Gackt?” teased Kenji, shaking his hips as he moved closer. Gackt stood rooted to the spot, his round eyes following every sway of Kenji’s ass. He stretched out his hand as though he was trying to touch it. But just then, he came to his senses and shot out another Vanilla beam, which narrowly missed Kenji’s ass.

  
“Oi Gackt!” shouted Jun. “I’m a big fan, but I have some questions to ask.”

  
“Yeah? Well now’s not really the time,” snapped Gackt, looking as though he could strike again at any moment.

  
“Well, in your last interview with Shock magazine, you said that your favourite pastime was answering fans questions!” argued Jun. “So, does that mean you lied in the interview? Imagine what your fans would think if they-"

  
“Fine, I’ll answer your questions! But make it quick!” bellowed Gackt furiously, unable to hide beneath his usual mask. Jun beamed, delighted that he had Gackt’s attention.

  
“Right then. In your autobiography, you said that a leader should always protect those under them. And yet here you are, hurting Kiryuuin. Does this mean that you are a liar? Or perhaps it means that you didn’t even write your own biography. How much did it cost to get someone to write it for you? Does it cost extra if you ask them to fill it with lies? And in Moon Child, you were portrayed as a hero, and yet-"

  
Gackt roared with anger, causing Jun to jump. He shot out another Vanilla beam, which exploded into a ball of glitter at Jun’s feet.

  
“Shut up!” Gackt screamed, before spinning around to face Kiryuuin, who had never seen Gackt so angry. “You! You’re the one who brought these fools to cause me trouble. You are nothing, Kiryuuin Shou. You worship me. Now, bow at my feet! _A crew sees crying knees!”_

  
Kiryuuin had no idea what Gackt meant by that, but he felt his knees buckle under him. He did everything he could to resist, but Gackt’s powers were too powerful. In a flash, Kiryuuin crumbled at Gackt’s feet, his forehead resting on the hard ground below him. Gackt let out an evil laugh, clearly happy with how things were going.

  
“See, Kiryuuin? This is what happens when you try to defy me. I know all about you. There’s no way you can stand up to me. So why don’t you- is that a head of lettuce?”

  
“No, it’s cabbage, motherfucker!” yelled Kyan.

  
In the split second that Gackt was distracted, Kiryuuin felt the force holding him down weaken. He managed to lift his head just in time to catch sight of Kyan digging into an entire cabbage that he must have hidden somewhere. His teeth moved inhumanly fast, devouring the entire thing within seconds.

  
“Ewwww, Kyan, did you even wash that?” protested Jun.

  
But Kyan took no notice. With the entire cabbage eaten, his took a deep breath, before spreading out his legs. Kiryuuin glanced at Gackt, who looked more confused than angry at this point. And then, all of a sudden, Kiryuuin understood what was about to happen.

  
Kyan scrunched up his slightly red face, as though he was caught between being in pain and trying to remember something. And then, Kyan let out the smelliest fart that Kiryuuin had ever encountered. Having dated Kyan for quite some time, Kiryuuin had gotten used to Kyan letting one rip here and there. But none of those farts could have compared to the one now. Even though Kiryuuin was still kneeling on the ground, he could feel his eyes water from the pure stench emitting from Kyan’s butt. He felt his breath catch in his throat. But he wasn’t the only one being affected by it.

  
“Kyan!” screeched Kenji, covering his nose and mouth with both hands as he keeled over. “How could you even produce such a… a monster? I’m dying! I’m dying! You’ve killed me, Kyan!”

  
Jun, who was also covering his face, took several steps back. But Kiryuuin was more focused on Gackt. His usual cool and composed mannerisms were completely thrown out the window as he gagged at the stench, tears streaming down his face. With one hand covering his mouth, Gackt reached into his jacket and pulled out an evil red button, which was covered by a plastic cover.

  
“Enough!” roared Gackt, still coughing. “When I press this button-“

  
“Superheroes don’t carry evil red buttons!” shouted Kyan. And with that, Kyan ripped the button from his hands and swallowed it all in one go.

  
“How dare you eat my evil red button!” screeched Gackt. But he managed to compose himself. “Not to worry, I can just press it while it’s inside your stomach.”

  
“Kiryuuin, hurry,” laughed Kyan, as Gackt began poking at his stomach. He may have been laughing, but his eyes were serious. “Hurry, get behind Gackt.”

  
Kiryuuin didn’t need telling twice. He scrambled on his hands and knees, getting into position within seconds. And that’s when it happened. Kyan, using all the force he had, pushed Gackt. Gackt stumbled backwards, and toppled over Kiryuuin, who was crouching down behind him. And then, seemingly in slow motion, Gackt fell to the ground.

  
“You did it Kyan,” beamed Kiryuuin, jumping to his feet and pulling Kyan into a hug. Behind him, Kenji and Jun were also embracing. After a few seconds of celebrating… Kiryuuin pulled away from Kyan to look at Gackt, who was lying flat on his back on the ground, a small cut now on his left cheek.

  
“You see, Gackt? The heroes always win!” beamed Kiryuuin.

  
“How did you know what to do, Kyan?” gasped Jun in admiration.

  
“Well, I noticed that the red button had a plastic casing,” explained Kyan proudly. “And I knew that if I swallowed it, Gackt wouldn’t be able to press the button. So-"

  
Bang. There was a sudden crash that sounded like thunder, and a huge cloud of black smoke appeared. Moments later, the smoke cleared, revealing a figure that Kiryuuin recognised as Hyde, the main actor from Moon Child. But Hyde looked somewhat different from how he normally did. For starters, he was levitating, perched carefully on top of a dark cloud. Two large wings extended from his back: one, a jet-black feathery and angelic looking wing, the other leathery and bat-like. A steam-punk style top hat with goggles attached sat on top of his head. But most striking were his eyes, one being a sparkling blue, the other a leering red. They were focused squarely on Gackt.

  
“It’s Hyde, the time wizard,” whispered Kenji.

  
At that moment, the spell gluing everyone’s eyes to Hyde was broken. Everyone stared in confusion at Kenji. But no-one was as confused as Hyde was. The mysterious mist disappeared, and Hyde stepped down from his cloud to stare at Kenji with utter surprise.

  
“How did you know I was a time wizard?” quizzed Hyde, his eyes wide.

  
Kenji shrugged.

  
“Dunno… I guess I could feel it in my stomach… no, I could feel it in my ass.”

  
Hyde looked as though he had more questions than answers at this point. But he pulled himself together. He shrugged, and with a flick of his long, braided hair, he moved towards Gackt. He knelt down beside him, drawing his face closer and closer to Gackt’s. Then, he extended his pink tongue, licking the blood from Gackt’s face. Kiryuuin blushed and looked away, only to find that Jun was staring, his eyes wide and curious.

  
“Gackt, Gackt, Gackt,” muttered Hyde. His way of speaking sounded playful, but Kiryuuin could hear the anger laced in his voice. “What have I told you about causing so much trouble? They’re schoolkids, Gackt. Seriously.”

  
“They’re not just any schoolkids,” protested Gackt. “They’re a superhero club, and they-"

  
“Silence!” hissed Hyde, causing Gackt to instantly fall silent. “I’ve warned you before, Gackt. As punishment, I’m going to destroy the giant Gundam statue in Odaiba!”

  
“No, anything but that!” pleaded Gackt, his voice filled with desperation. But Hyde wasn’t wavering.

  
“In fact, forget destroying it,” continued Hyde angrily. “I’m going to go back in time and make sure the statue is never made! No, I’ll go back and destroy the entirety of Gundam. You’ll never even know that it existed!”

  
“Noooo!” screamed Gackt, pulling on the ends of Hyde’s long trench coat in protest.

  
“But how could you do that?” asked Kyan, looking utterly confused.

  
“Just like Kabuki Boy here said, I’m a time wizard,” sighed Hyde impatiently. Kenji beamed, delighted that he had been mentioned. But Hyde looked unhappy.

  
“Well, I’ve got a big mess to clean up here, and I think there’s only one way to deal with it,” grumbled Hyde. He looked at the four superheroes. “I’m going to have to send you four back in time. You won’t remember any of this. In fact, it’ll be as though you were born at least ten, maybe fifteen years before your actual birthdates. But you’ll have to trust me. Hurry, there’s not much time. Everyone, get into the Gacktmobile.

  
“I’m driving!” yelled Kyan, rushing towards the front of the Gacktmobile. To Kiryuuin’s surprise, Hyde didn’t object. As usual, Kiryuuin climbed into the passenger seat. Hyde got in the back, Kenji and Jun sitting on either side of him.

  
“Wow, I’ve always wanted to see the inside of the Gacktmobile!” breathed Jun excitedly. But then his face fell. “But if we go back in time, I guess that’ll mean that I’ll never get to see Nightmare live.”

  
Kiryuuin’s heart sank as he realised that he too would miss out on his first-ever Gackt live.

  
“Don’t worry about that,” said Hyde reassuringly. “You’ll get to see them live. One day… You too, Kiryuuin, you’ll get to see him too.”

  
Kiryuuin jumped, realising that perhaps Hyde was even more powerful than he had imagined. He then began to worry about whether or not he’d see the others again.

  
“Don’t worry, I guarantee you that all four of you will meet again,” assured Hyde. “Your lives will be different, but it’ll be for the better.”

  
“What about Gackt?” asked Kiryuuin suddenly. He knew that Gackt had hurt him, but he still felt worried. He couldn’t completely erase the feelings of admiration that he’d always had for him.

  
“Don’t worry, I’ll deal with him later,” assured Hyde. “I’ll wipe all your memories of this, so you won’t have to worry when… I mean, _if_ you encounter him again.”

  
“But what about the red button?” asked Kyan anxiously. “I ate it so that Gackt couldn’t press it. But what if my stomach dissolves the cover, and I somehow manage to press-“

  
Kyan stopped talking as Hyde burst out laughing, tears sliding down his face.

  
“Oh, Kyan, don’t worry about that. I gave the button to Gackt,” explained Hyde. “So I know exactly what it does. When you press the button, an invisible hand spanks my ass.”

  
“But… why would you make a button that does that?” asked Kyan, sounding confused. Behind him, Jun glanced at Kenji, before turning bright red.

  
“Anyway, we must hurry,” said Hyde eventually with a poker face. “Kyan, would you mind?”

  
And so Kyan drove the Gacktmobile, Hyde’s magic guiding them through space and time.


	10. Epilogue

Just as Hyde had explained, the four boys lost their memories. But the string of fate that bound them together was too strong. Even though they ended up being born in a slightly different time era, they still ended up together, this time as the band called Golden Bomber. At first it was just Kiryuuin, Kyan and Jun, but eventually Kenji heard the call of destiny and joined them. While they were not out there saving the world, they did help bring smiles to people’s faces.

  
Meanwhile, Gackt was also transported back. Not much changed for him though. He was still a superhero visual kei actor. Except this time, he kept his powers a secret and only used them on very special occasions.

  
Gackt and Golden Bomber eventually did cross paths, but just as Hyde the time wizard had promised, they had no recollection of what had happened, and even ended up becoming friends. Kiryuuin managed to see Gackt live not just once, but several times. Meanwhile, not only did Jun get to see Nightmare live, but he also got to interview Yomi the vocalist.

  
The visual kei world was at peace. For now…

*

Hyde the time wizard turned over, pulling the blanket closer to his body. It had been a long day, and it had taken so long to calculate and execute everything. Somehow, he had pulled it off flawlessly, creating a reality where things would run smoothly.

  
Or so he thought he had. Suddenly, he sat bolt upright.

  
“Shit!” exclaimed Hyde. “I accidentally zapped the new X Japan album out of existence!”

  
He thought about it for a moment, before lying back down and pulling the covers over his head. He had done enough that day, and it certainly wasn’t worth altering the fabric of the universe for such a trivial matter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed reading this!
> 
> Years ago, after watching Gackt in several movies and watching the Golden Bomber movies, I decided I wanted Gackt and Kiryuuin Shou to star in a movie together, with Gackt being the hero and Kiryuuin the sidekick. I think I even tweeted at Gackt and asked him for them to make a movie together!
> 
> What I have written here is not really what I had in mind back then, but I still think Gackt plays a cool villain. 
> 
> I do wonder though, if those two made a movie together, what would they come up with...


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